


Ghosted

by tailoredlillies



Category: Banana Fish (Anime & Manga)
Genre: 80s Ash and Modern Eiji, Ash is the ghost, I messed with the timeline a lot, Literally how do I tag, M/M, Not a slow burn lol, Protective Ash Lynx, Tags to be added as I go, Things get spooky, eiji is an angel, ghost au, idk how this works, lots of fighting, we fast burning
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-11
Updated: 2020-04-29
Packaged: 2020-05-01 12:51:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 35,927
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19177513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tailoredlillies/pseuds/tailoredlillies
Summary: Eiji Okumura is a former high school athlete, esteemed photographer, and assistant to paranormal investigator Shunichi Ibe. He’s visiting America with Ibe for a series of investigations into haunted properties.Aslan Jade Callenreese died of a fatal stab wound in 1986 with heaps of unfinished business and unvanquished enemies. And Eiji is his last hope.





	1. An End and A Beginning

Ash neither feared death nor desired it. But that didn’t mean he understood it. It was one of the only things his genius brain could not predict the aftermath of. Despite all his godly abilities and prowess, this absence of knowledge made him human. Because death is for everyone to have and no one to understand.

Five minutes before he was stabbed, he was racing down the halls of Golzine’s mansion, with two guns on his hip and one in his hand. The raid was stumbling and his thoughts were compounding rapidly with plans and solutions to every possible problem. Guns were ringing like bell chimes and making the air tremble.

Perhaps he could blame his negligence on a lack of sleep. Perhaps an empty stomach, dehydration, or he’d been drugged at the bar earlier. Regardless of what slowed his reflexes, he was a split second too slow to dodge the soldiers waiting just behind the entrance to the kitchen. 

The same soldiers who lay scattered in their own puddles of blood with grisly holes through their heads. His gun had been flung from his hand, skittered under one of the many counters in the kitchen. He could still it glinting faintly from where he lay on the tiles.

Ash should’ve felt insulted that an attack that he could’ve easily anticipated would be his downfall. Maybe they were professionals. Maybe Ash should’ve taken better care of himself. 

When he was wallowing in his final moments, he could feel his conscience being gently snipped from the body that had served him so well, to give him final peace as his veins ran dry. Not long before, his mind had been a pack of wild dogs, scrambling and fighting and utterly wild. Now it lay as silent and still as a frozen lake. 

He hadn’t taken the knife out. That was one of Blanca’s first lessons. Pull the knife out and you let yourself bleed out faster. It seemed that it didn’t matter though, as it still jutted from his chest while he lay, collapsed and near dead in Golzine’s halls. At least Papa Dino wasn’t there to gloat on Ash’s downfall. He was painfully alone.

_ I’m not done _ , he thought.  _ Dino still hasn’t paid for what he’s done. I have people to avenge. Skip and Jennifer and Griffin and Shorter…  _

Ash couldn’t feel any part of his body, the only thing he could hear was an ominous, droning ring. The metallic scent of his own blood was gone. His vision ebbed.

_ Please...I’m not done yet…Give me more time, just a bit more time... _

Death watched him.

_ Snip _ .


	2. The Investigators

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We meet Eiji and Ibe, the dynamic ghost hunting duo.

Eiji’s fingers were bleeding.

He’d been nervous before plane rides, nervous before cases, and nervous before meeting clients. All those fears seemed tiny compared to the scale of the American job. Eiji had never left Japan before, only travelled around for cases and pole vaulting meets back in the day. Now he was standing on American soil, in an American airport, surrounded by a muddle of unfamiliar people and English. He could speak the language well, and could read it if given enough time, but he’d never felt so overwhelmed so quickly. The airport was saturated with the smell of coffee and harsh chatter, and his head throbbed in the same beat as his heart.

“Are you alright, Eiji?” Ibe asked in Japanese. Eiji stopped biting at his fingers, shoving his hands in his pockets, and swallowed nervously. 

“It’s a lot different is all,” Eiji answered reluctantly. “Isn’t all the food here gross and unhealthy?”

“I’m sure they think that about our food too,” Ibe said thoughtfully. “We’ll find stuff, it’ll be alright.”

“Okay,” Eiji nodded, gripping his bags tightly. They would be taking a road trip across the country in a rented van, staying at motels near sites they’d been hired to. They’d be starting in the American metropolis of New York after getting a call from a Japanese exchange student attending New York University who’d heard of Ibe and Eiji’s work. She’d seen a misty little girl running down the hallway and heard knocking every night that kept her from sleep. Pretty standard. 

Ibe had his bag of paranormal equipment slung over his shoulder. EVP recorders, EMF meters, laser grids, thermal cameras, motion detectors and the newest model of spirit box. Eiji had his camera in a bag and a Ouija board in his luggage. Ibe scoffed every time he brought it out, but spirits seemed to like talking to him, be it through EVP or Ouija.

“Let’s hurry out,” Ibe said. “Our taxi should be here.” 

Eiji trailed behind him like smoke after a fire.

 

Their client was spending the night with her friend off campus so Ibe and Eiji could properly investigate her room. It was very plain, with the bed neatly made and a simple stack of books on the desk. She’d given them specific instructions to stay out of her closet and dresser. This wasn’t uncommon, clients were usually paranoid that the team would spend their night judging their homes, so they’d clean to hide all evidence of personality or hobbies. 

The sky was ink outside, though New York never truly got dark. Plenty of light from the life on the other side of the window. Eiji snapped the curtains shut to provide them proper darkness.

Ibe plugged in the light grid and the walls became an optical illusion of bright green dots, the closest thing to stars Eiji had seen in New York. 

“She said that she mainly hears the tapping above her head around 10:30, so we should start trying to initiate contact within the next five minutes or so.” Ibe commented casually. “I did some research, and this facility was actually built atop thousands of bodies not given a proper burial. There’s likely lots of unhappy spirits here.”

“Maybe we can help some of them tonight,” Eiji took out his Ouija board and set it down before his knees. His mentor gave his traditional huff of amusement.

“Maybe you can,” Ibe answered. “They seem to talk to you the most.”

“Perhaps they like the Ouija board.”

“Ei-chan, the board is manufactured by a toy company.”

Before Eiji can retort back, a muted  _ thud _ silences them. The curtains rustled and allowed a sword of golden light to scrape the carpeted floor.

“Hello?” Ibe says calmly in English. He turns on the EVP recorder. “Is there someone with us right now?”

_ We’ll be working with American spirits,  _ Eiji actually realizes for the first time.  _ Will the older ones be resentful of foreigners? What if we break some kind of cultural rule? I’m so glad Ibe has been here before. _

Ibe stops recording and plays it back. The audio is thick with static and they hear Ibe ask his question. Eiji zeroes in on the recording, ears keen to any change in the crackling.

“ _ Mmmmm… _ ” A vaguely female voice sighs on the recording. Ibe’s eyes spark a bit with excitement. It’s not a definite voice, but it’s close. Ibe sends Eiji a knowing nod and starts to record again. 

“Hi,” Eiji crosses his legs and lets his eyes wander the room, the lights from the street painting tiger stripes across the walls. “We’re here to help you. Are you okay with us being here?”

After an acceptable amount of time, Ibe stops recording and hits play. The first listen, neither of them hear anything, but the second time around Eiji notices a faint, high pitched hum enfolded in the static.

“Looks like we are indeed dealing with a little girl,” Ibe mutters underneath his breath in Japanese. “Poor child.”

A book slides down from atop the client’s neat pile. From the center of the desk.

Eiji’s breath hitches. 

“Can you tell us your name?” Ibe says again, his expression hardening. When objects moved on their own, they’d have to proceed with more caution than usual. 

The recording is cruel, uninterrupted static. Eiji’s heart suddenly started pounding and he became hyperaware with panic. It wasn’t his feeling though- it was younger. He reaches for the spirit box with hands shaking with someone else’s fear while Ibe turns on his thermal camera.

Since Eiji had encountered his first spirit years ago, he always found himself feeling random emotions in their presence. When he’d mentioned it to Ibe, he said Eiji likely possessed some level of empathic abilities. It certainly made Eiji more comfortable with meeting spirits, since he could always sense their true intentions. 

He switched the spirit box on, flinching at the choppy roar of noise. The beats of silence between the deafening white noise reminded Eiji of an angry dog gnashing it’s teeth. The spirit box surfed radio channels at a rapid speed, and the energy created allowed spirits to communicate through the speaker. Hearing one word could be dismissed as a powerful radio channel, but any more could be safely assumed to be paranormal.

“My name is Eiji,” he smiled. It wasn’t a good idea to give hostile spirits your name, but he felt sympathy for this wandering girl. She was just scared. “I just wanted to ask how you’re doing. Are you lonely here?”

A split second of music played through the spirit box from a nearby radio station.

“M...om…” 

Ibe’s eyes widened as he gazed through the camera lens. 

“El...e...vator…”

“Do you want to see your mom?” Eiji asked. 

“Huhh...ha….” the girl’s voice sighed and hiccupped. 

“I know how you can see her, sweetheart,” his voice floated. “Just tell me you want to and you can go.”

Ibe lowered his camera, his eyes resting on the empty space next to Eiji. 

“Help...me…”

Eiji had never walked someone through leaving the physical plane, that was usually Ibe’s job. But the girl seemed to only trust Eiji, and he had a responsibility to help those who couldn’t help themselves.

“Okay sweetie, here’s what I need you to do…” 

 

“You know she was next to you, right?” Ibe said as he combed through shelves of books. After Eiji successfully helped the young girl cross over, his adrenaline had been pumping too fast for him to sleep, so they’d headed over to the nearby library to read a bit more about their next location, a supposedly haunted mansion whose owner was involved in dozens of scandals and the mafia. Ibe’s American friend was investigating and asked for the Japanese help after unforseen supernatural complications.

“I’m happy she’s at peace, but I wonder how many other unhappy spirits are trapped there. I wish I could help them all,” Eiji flipped through a book labeled “Great American Scandals”, searching for the English letters Ibe instructed him to memorize. 

“You can’t save everyone, Ei-chan,” Ibe sighed. “But they will all find their peace eventually. Everybody does.”

Eiji sat down with his book and skimmed his fingers across the page, focusing on identifying the word,  _ Gol-zine _ . He couldn’t help but let his attention wander though.

“What is a ‘Wah-ter-gate’?” He scrutinized the page. 

“Not relevant right now,” Ibe chuckled. Eiji shrugged and continued skimming. Again, his attention span failed him and his gaze shifted upwards around the library. He could only see one other person aside from Ibe in the library, an American student gently muttering to herself as she prowled through the books. He looked over his shoulder. Ibe had drifted to another aisle and was no longer paying attention to Eiji. 

He quietly stood up and shut his book, sneaking off to shamelessly look for manga. The shelves seemed taller with the library so dark, like trees in a forest. Only a couple of lights were on, so the stretching shadows were dark as pitch and seemed to drink in the little surrounding life. The back of Eiji’s neck prickled with unease, his feet halting in place. He suddenly felt the overwhelming feeling that he was being watched. The library felt very empty very fast, without a single living person in sight. 

_ I need to get out of here _ , He thought over and over.  _ I am not safe here.  _

Eiji swivelled and made his way back towards the table, navigating an extensive labyrinth of shelves.  _ There wasn’t this many shelves before, was there? Haven’t I already gone through this section? _

After rounding another corner, a short man with a painful slouch stood browsing in front of him, eyes hidden by harsh shadows.

“Excuse me,” Eiji said nervously, his nerves alight with panicked energy.

The man turned to smoke as soon as Eiji tried to wiggle by. 

His breath suddenly snatched away from him, Eiji scrambled away, his heart jackknifing in his chest. 

_ What was that...who was that… _ He thought, his legs pumping like a machine. “Ibe! Ibe-san!”

“Ei-chan? What is it?” Ibe replied in Japanese. Eiji raced to find the origin of his voice. He ran for what felt like hours through the library.

“Where are you?” Eiji called. “We need to leave!”

Ibe stood at the end of the next aisle Eiji swung himself into. Panting excessively, he grabbed his mentor’s hand and tugged him towards the stairs. 

“Why do we need to leave? What’s wrong?” Ibe asked.

“There’s an awful spirit here,” Eiji swung the door open and quickly clomped down the stairs. “He radiated negativity, and he vanished when I touched him.”

“Okay, okay I trust you,” Ibe followed him down to the ground floor. The sound of their hurried steps reverberating off the stone walls was like thunder. 

Eiji had encountered the sudden seizes of panic before in the presence of spirits who meant him harm. A little under a year ago, when investigating a murder site, he’d suddenly felt like he’d been doused in ice water. Moments later a foreign force that felt very much like human hands had pressed down on his throat. He almost choked, and likely would’ve if it hadn’t been for Ibe bursting in with a small bag of clove and jade stone. He’d quickly placed both on Eiji’s chest, and the phantom fingers released him. Since then, Eiji had tied the little jade stone around the bag of clove and kept the necklace in his bag at all times. He would never again let himself be attacked by something he couldn’t see. 

The sharply cold air on Eiji’s sweating skin was a blessing as he burst through the door. He inhaled, savoring air he knew was polluted, but at least came from outside. Ibe stepped out a moment later.

“Are you alright?” he asked, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

“I’m fine,” Eiji straightened, regaining his composure. “Let’s just get away from here.”   
“Okay,” Ibe nodded. He rubbed Eiji’s shoulder in comfort and led him to the van, their footsteps joining the chorus of late night New York sounds.

Eiji’s body came to the sickening realization that he was in a vastly different time zone, hadn’t slept in over 24 hours, and he was tired from so much spirit activity. He was out like a light as soon as he was buckled into the passenger seat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed!


	3. The Golzine Mansion

Max Lobo was staring intimately at a black coffee, rubbing the mug’s handle with a calloused thumb. His eyes were glazed and red with exhaustion. The almost thirty year old investigation into allegations against Dino Golzine had been consuming all of his time. His team had been searching the preserved mansion in New York for evidence into all the accusations levied against the late Mafia boss, and the paranormal interference was not helping. Calling Ibe felt almost shameful, especially after Max had teased him for investigating fiction. However, after one of his men was knocked unconscious by a falling vase that moved entirely on its own, Max was forced to swallow his pride.

“Sir, the ghost hunters you hired are here,” Officer Beauregard called. Max looked up from his coffee. They were set up in the foyer of the mansion, an old table serving as a desk for all six officers. Files were scattered across the table and two laptops sat dead in a stack. The power was thready and it was hard to get a consistent charge.

“Call them paranormal investigators,” He replied gruffly. “It’s more polite.” His joints aching as he moved, Max hoisted himself from his seat and made his way to the front door. The emptiness of the grand mansion echoed every footstep in an unhappy chant.

“Do you seriously believe that we’re dealing with real ghosts here?” Officer Beauregard scoffed at Max’s back. 

“I trust Ibe, and no one can explain how Roger got knocked out. I’m taking precautions,” Max let some edge enter his voice, warning his subordinate to back off. “Keep everyone in the living area for now.”

Officer Beauregard grit his teeth, but turned to follow his captain’s instructions regardless. Max glanced out the window, where two figures stood outside a rented van. He hurried out to meet them.

Ibe had changed a little since Max had last seen him. His face was painted with more wrinkles than before and his mustache bushier. He brightened instantly upon noticing the police captain approaching and Max’s steps immediately felt lighter

“Hello Max,” Ibe smiled, extending an affectionate hand. 

“Ibe! How’ve you been?” Max shook it and grinned. He hadn’t expected his friend’s arrival to give him such a spike of energy.

“I’ve been fine. You look exhausted,” Ibe said with a hint of concern. 

“This investigation has really been taking a toll on me,” Max ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. “But hopefully you being here can help speed along the process.”   
“We’ll do our best,” Ibe nodded confidently. 

“Oh, who is this? Your nephew?” Max took sudden notice of the smaller Japanese boy next to Ibe. He had messy black hair that swept over ebony eyes. He reminded Max of a puppy.

“My name is Eiji Okumura,” he said, instinctively dipping his head. His voice had a much thicker accent than Ibe. “Nice to meet you.”

“He’s my assistant,” Ibe patted the young boy’s back. “I hope that’s alright.”

“Of course. Welcome to the team Eiji,” Max held out his hand. 

Eiji acted as though his hand was made of hot iron, slow to grab and quick to release.

“Let’s go inside, I’ll give you the rundown on what’s going on,” Max crooked a thumb toward the mansion and offered a smile he hoped concealed his dread.

The mansion was two, maybe three stories tall and surrounded by a mossy white brick wall. The building itself had clearly been neglected. Walls once smooth and pearly were dull and chipping. Ivy ensnared the frame, spreading like lines on a roadmap. The fountain out front had streaks of rust on it like dried blood, and the figure on it had its features eroded away. Hedges and trees overflowed into the yard, where grass grew to the height of a man’s waist. The blue tiles of the roof were soiled and patchy. The windows were shattered and veiled in cobwebs. 

Eiji could tell that it had once been grand, a fantastic sight with its golden rails and vivid green scenery. Now it looked like a defeated beast, backed into a corner as nature reclaimed it. He felt many things stirring in his gut from many different sources. It was ironic that the mansion appeared so dead when it bustled with the energy of dozens of lingering spirits. 

“What do you think?” Ibe quietly asked in Japanese as they followed Max to the door. The cracks in the pavement were stuffed with moss beneath their feet. 

“I’m feeling a lot right now,” Eiji answered honestly. “There’s definitely spirits here.”

“Any hostile?” Ibe gripped his bag tighter, his eyes skittering from the younger boy to the looming mansion. 

“...I think so,” Eiji said. There was a pit of foreign aggression, someone else’s aggression, resting in his gut that made his hair stand on end. 

While leading them across the lavishly large estate, Max had given them an overview on their investigation. The mansion belonged to the late Dino Golzine. He was a powerful figure in the Corsican mafia and was exposed for tax fraud, money laundering, importing and exporting drugs, even funding research into a strangely named mind control drug. When all those allegations came to light, Dino was pulled into custody and his property seized by the government. For around thirty years, the Golzine property was touched only by investigators and government officials. In the past year though, evidence had been uncovered suggesting Dino had been involved with prostitution and gang activity in his time as well. So the police reopened Golzine’s case and administered an even more thorough investigation into the man’s crimes.

Not only that, but the very property they walked had been host to a number of murders, fires, even a gun fight. Golzine had many people killed here due to both mafia and gang business. One of the gangs he had a hand in even turned on him and brought a mass of gun wielding teenagers on his property amidst the madness surrounding the Banana Fish drug. There were twenty seven casualties, only six of which were from the street gang. With so much death, destruction, and injustice on the land, it was almost certainly haunted by some unhappy souls.

“Welcome inside, boys,” Max swung the mighty doors to the mansion open. Eiji instantly felt a wave of exhaustion and dizziness, stumbling back. Everything about the house screamed  _ Go away _ .

“Are you alright?” Ibe placed a steadying hand on Eiji’s shoulder and led him over the threshold of the mansion.

“I’ll be fine,” Eiji smiled softly despite how his skin prickled with unease. There was a sad energy to his right, but when he looked, an empty hallway stared back at him.

The inside of the mansion matched its exterior. Arching ceilings were slicked with cobwebs and every piece of furniture held about an inch of dust. Almost all the mirrors on every wall were cracked or shattered. Paintings were faded and the shrivelled, black remains of flowers peaked hopelessly out of splintered vases. The floors creaked and Eiji walked through two uncomfortable cold spots before they reached the police team seated in the living room. The fireplace was boarded up by a wooden X. A large portrait covered by a hanging sheet glared from above the mantel, only a triangle of a burgundy background exposed. 

Couches covered in a thin layer of protective plastic framed an intricate rug. A plain coffee table decorated with an empty magazine rack sat in the middle and bookshelves lined the far wall. The tall windows were partially covered by threadbare sheets, letting patches of sunlight gently caress every surface of the room. 

There were five officers seated on the plastic covered couches, two women and three men. The one sitting in the lone armchair looked especially irritated.

“Everyone, this is Shunichi Ibe and Eiji Okumura,” Max introduced them to the team in the room. “They will be helping us with some of the strange phenomena that have been interrupting our investigation.”   
The irritated officer whispered to another and they both chuckled. 

Eiji felt his skin prickle. It was too common for people to be skeptical of their line of work. He and Ibe had faced much scrutiny in Japan and when Eiji had actually been attending university, he was catalogued as a freak that everyone avoided. Backhanded comments and haughty eyes found the two almost every day. He should be used to the constant judgement by now- but he still felt the whispers as though they were a hot iron on his skin. 

“We’d like to speak to anyone who’s had a strange encounter or seen anything out of the ordinary while working here,” Ibe started, ignoring the doubtful looks. He withdrew a pen and notepad from his bag. 

“That would be everyone,” one man with a dark goatee said gruffly. 

“Really?” Ibe sat down. “What’s your name?”   
“Detective Philip Connelly, at your service,” he grinned lightly. Ibe made a quick note on his paper.

“And what have you experienced?” Ibe asked. 

“Well, I was snooping around one of the bedrooms upstairs,” Connelly started, leaning back casually. “We’re here investigating allegations of sexual abuse, y’know, so I figured I’d check there. When I opened one of the drawers the door slammed shut behind me. I couldn’t open the door when I tried, and the drawer I had opened slammed shut as well. I was in there for a solid ten minutes until Amy found me and let me out.” He jutted a finger toward a curly haired woman sat opposite him. “Another day when I was looking around the dining room a picture on a shelf fell out of nowhere and I felt someone breathe on my neck even though I was alone. Another time when I was checking out one of the bathrooms the water in the bath turned on. The handle had been moved, it wasn’t just faulty plumbing.”

Ibe carefully listened to each detective and police officer list their paranormal encounters, all of a similar caliber to Connelly’s. Being randomly locked in rooms, doors opening and shutting on their own, objects moving, and some voices. One officer with a square jaw and beady eyes even claimed to have seen a tall man in a suit walking down a hallway before vanishing. With every story Eiji felt more and more lightheaded, fingers tapping nervously on the back of Ibe’s chair. 

“We’re supposed to have one more detective with us,” Max said once his team had finished. “But he’s in the hospital right now after a vase from the second story dropped down and nailed him in the head. He’s got a concussion and he’s getting staples put in.”   
Eiji noticed Ibe biting his lip. Twice they’d had to deal with spirits trying to actively hurt them or someone else. The time Eiji was strangled and another time when a young college boy was being harassed by one of his friends who died in an accident with him. The friend was able to be subdued by a combination of long talks with Eiji and hanging garlic in the doorframes, and Ibe helped him crossover. The first spirit though had been pure unquenchable rage, too far gone to be helped. All they could do was burn juniper to clear it out of their client’s house. Now they were surrounded by vengeful spirits intent on ridding the house of the living by any means possible.

“So what do you think?” Max asked. “Sound like a ghost?”

At that moment, one of the many books wedged firmly into the shelves on the wall flung itself out towards the investigators. It scuffed Max’s head and landed at Eiji’s feet. 

Ibe stared intently at the book while Eiji’s heart pounded like a wardrum. He reached into his bag and pulled out his thermal camera.

“I’m going to go ahead and say you’re definitely not alone here,” He aimed the camera at the bookshelf. An orange humanoid figure clashed against the blues and purples of the room.


	4. The Empath

For thirty years, Ash had avoided interacting with the other spirits trapped in the mansion. The only ones he saw were all Golzine’s men, lingering either out of loyalty to Dino, stubbornness, or a sense of injustice about how they died. He was sure that there were more spirits beyond Golzine’s cronies on this godforsaken property, but they probably did just as Ash was doing, keeping their presence small and unknown to avoid any possible altercations with their former enemies. 

Ash didn’t just steer clear of other dead beings- he preferred to stay away from the living too. He had simply watched all those clumsy investigators take their sweet time uncovering everything he’d already known. He observed the spirits of Golzine’s fallen men doing everything in their paranormal power to interrupt or stop the investigators. He had tried to contact the living once, when he’d first come to terms with the fact that he was dead and still stuck in the same hellish walls he’d known in life. He tried to write to the first batch of detectives but could never hold the pen long enough. He gave as many signals as possible, flickering lights in important rooms, morse code tapping, even leaving trails of wrinkled flower petals to evidence but his attempts only scared them. After a year of trying, he gave up. And then he watched. 

In those thirty years of watching, he’d never imagined anything like this. Ash’s ghostly form had been slouched over one of the many couches scattered in Golzine’s mansion when he noticed the van pulling up. The head detective, Max Lobo, had mentioned hiring a paranormal investigator, but Ash didn’t expect him to actually carry through. He hurried to the window and did what he did best- watched. Two men with dark hair exited the van, carrying bags of equipment. They talked briefly to Max before they began approaching the house. His curiosity commanding him, Ash went to meet them at the door.

The moment the smaller investigator entered, Ash felt drawn to him. A Japanese boy who looked even younger than Ash had been when he’d died. His black eyes were somehow bright, and his skin glowed with a warm, welcoming aura that existed on the spiritual plane. There was instinctive tug in the core of Ash’s being telling him he could trust this foreign boy with pretty eyes and an angelic aura. 

The boy turned to his right and stared straight at- or rather, straight through Ash. 

“Do...do you know I’m here?” Ash barely whispered. The boy didn’t hear him. Of course he didn't. Living people couldn’t hear him if he screamed at the top of his lungs. 

The other spirits in the house were noticing the newcomers and wafting from their corners and cold spots to see. They felt that same gut feeling Ash had. The pretty angel boy was closer to them than any of the other living people. He had an aura, a connection.

Ash followed him into the living room. The boy didn’t speak the whole time, he kept looking around the room with his bright black eyes. He glanced at the older Japanese man a couple times. He didn’t seem particularly scared, just off balance and uneasy. When they were in the living room, he neglected to sit and only stood by the chair his mentor had taken. Ash was dimly aware of the adults talking, he mostly watched the boy as he tapped his fingers and fidgeted with a clunky bag over his shoulder. 

A spike of unease hit Ash like an arrow, reminding him to keep his own presence low and undetectable. He looked up to see the shady form of Golzine’s cronie drifting into the room, misty eyes fixed on the glowing Japanese boy. The phantom soldier suddenly became aggressive and pulsed dangerous energy, scrambling for the closest solid.

_ He’s going to attack _ , Ash realized as the guard grabbed a solid book and flung it towards the Japanese boy..

The book just skimmed Max Lobo’s hair, and Ash sprung into action. He’d never been eager to manipulate objects on a different plane, but he carefully slowed the book enough that it cluttered to rest at the boy’s feet. It took energy Ash didn’t care to spend to move solids, and he was still trying to stay under the other spirits’ radar. 

__ _ Why would he… _ Ash turned to stare at Golzine’s man.  _ Why aim at the boy? Are they threatened or just trying to interrupt the investigation? Maybe trying to scare the new people away? _

The older Japanese man raised a strange looking device towards Golzine’s man.  _ A thermal camera _ , Ash realized.  _ Can he see us? _ He leaned over the man’s shoulder and noticed the spirit’s figure on the small screen. 

“I’m going to go ahead and say you’re definitely not alone here,” the man said.

Ash smiled a little.  _ They might actually be capable of helping.  _

He turned his attention back to the angel boy, who was sitting now, staring at the book before him. His fingers lightly skimmed the page. Was he trying to read it?  _ Does this boy even speak English? _

A shiver suddenly struck Ash’s vague little form. He turned to find the thermal camera pointed straight at him.

“There’s two people here with us right now,” the Japanese man said. 

“Is that thing foolproof?” One of the detectives asked. 

“It’s never failed me,” the man replied. “Eiji, how are you doing?”

_ His name is Eiji. _

The angel boy looked up, eyes glistening like polished stones. “The one who threw the book is angry. The one beside me is lonely.”

Ash was dimly aware of Max Lobo asking if they were safe in the room with the spirits and what they could do to protect themselves. He was busy staring with fascination at the angel boy- Eiji. Eiji couldn’t see him, yet he looked sympathetically at Ash. 

In thirty years, Ash steadily neglected considering the consequences of his actions. Nothing he did changed anything. So he thought nothing when he reached out to touch Eiji’s shoulder. 

Eiji startled from his touch. Though his eyes widened, the shining kindness of his gaze and energy never faltered.

_ He felt it. How did he feel me?  _

__ _ Who is he? _

“Let’s move to another room,” Lobo said, eying the room with new distrust. “Come on everyone.” 

The living people shot fearful glances over their shoulder, all hurrying out, eager to avoid being last. Eiji got up slowly. He didn’t mind being last, still searching with those enchanting eyes of his. 

“Are you lonely?” He asked. 

_ Where did you come from, angel boy… _

“I’m sorry you’re stuck here,” Eiji looked around the whole room. “I’m going to try and help all of you, okay? Please don’t hurt us, we’ll leave you alone if that’s what you want. You don’t need to be angry.” His gaze shifted to land on the bookshelf, where the book throwing guard stood. The guard’s face twisted in disgust as he pulled out his phantasmic gun and fired it at the boy.

The only result was a small  _ tap _ on the wall behind Eiji that he barely acknowledged.

Ash followed Eiji out of the room and down the halls, trailing behind the adults. He wanted both to protect him against any of the angry guards shuffling around and to touch him again. A living person had never responded so calmly to his presence- no, no one had ever responded to him. This was so new. 

Eiji was a candle in a dark room, and Ash wanted nothing more than to gaze into the flame. 

“Did you die here?” Eiji asked quietly. He was purposefully lagging behind everyone else as they made their way down one of the longer halls. 

“Yes,” Ash shouted, desperate to be heard. He leaned in to soak up the warmth of the energy radiating from the boy. “I was stabbed in this house. Can you hear me?”   
Eiji paused a moment, and again looked to his side where Ash stood. “I hear you.”

“Really? You can actually hear me?”   
Eiji smiled a little. His glowing aura brightened even more. “I can hear you. It’s weird and faint, but I can hear you. What’s your name?”

“I’m called Ash, Ash Lynx,” he actually felt excited. For thirty long years he had lamented in the house that had stolen his childhood, his freedom, and his life. For thirty years he had to hide himself from other spirits that still lingered who would’ve no doubt terrorized him if they ever realized his presence. Over the course of three decades no one had ever cared to be friendly or try to communicate. And now this shining boy from Japan showed up and asked if he was lonely. He asked for his name.

“Ash Lynx,” Eiji repeated. His accent made it sound like  _ Ah-shu _ . “How long have you been here?” 

“Thirty years,” Ash replied. “Thirty years being dead at least.”

“Wow,” Eiji blinked thoughtfully. “That’s a long time to be by yourself.”

“You have no idea,” Ash almost laughed. He reached out again to touch Eiji’s hand- not to be flirty or playful. The softness of his fingers and the warmth from his living body were addictive. 

Eiji startled again at the contact, yanking his hand to his chest. “Oh god Ash, you’re going to give me a heart attack,” he gave a breathy laugh, holding his hand over his heart. 

“I’m sorry,” Ash said. “I just haven’t spoken to anyone or had human contact in so long. And you kind of radiate this energy that’s really inviting.”

“Ibe says that’s because I’m an empath,” Eiji replied as he shifted his gaze to the ceiling, almost relaxed while he spoke to the dead. “I can feel other people’s emotions in a way and it makes spirits seem to like me.”

“I’m assuming Ibe is the other Japanese guy?” Ash cocked his head. He noticed three of Golzine’s men eying Eiji from a distance and took a step closer to him, as if he could mute the boy’s glow. Luckily, the men only seemed interested in observing.

“Yes, he’s kind of my mentor and partner.” Eiji shrugged warmly, aura brightening.

“Are you from Japan? Why are you here?” Ash had never been overly social, but now all he wanted to do was talk and talk and talk. It wasn’t until he’d gotten a taste of human interaction that he realized just how badly he’d missed it. 

“Yes, we are from Japan. I am from Izumo,” Eiji stared hard at the space Ash’s form occupied, like he was trying to will his eyes to see the dead boy. “We got a lot of calls from Japanese Americans here who wanted help, and Max Lobo asked Ibe-san for help with all the paranormal issues in his investigation, so we are here to help.”

“How do you plan to help?” Ash didn’t want to, but he felt doubtful that the two Japanese investigators could do much. Especially with how many angry spirits lingered here.

“We will try to talk to them, to make them understand what’s happening,” Eiji’s head tilted as he considered his next words. “Help them cross from the living world to where they belong.”

“They won’t leave as long as there are police here,” Ash grimaced, glancing back to the three soldiers still following. “They’re too dedicated to Golzine to leave his property unguarded.”

Eiji wringed his hands, thinking. “Then we will try to calm them until the police are done with their job.”

“Calm them how?” 

“Herbs, charms, gemstones,” Eiji patted his backpack. “We have supplies to keep negative energy or evil spirits away.”

Ash Lynx was an actual, real ghost, but he still chuffed a little. Herbs and gems seemed almost tackily superstitious. This Japanese boy must be some kind of hippie. “Do they actually work?”

“Yes,” Eiji pulled a plain necklace out of his bag. A small brown bag with a jade stone hung from the cord. “This is clove and jade. It’s saved me before.”

To Ash’s surprise, the few hostile spirits who’d been lurking paused at the sight of the necklace. They looked almost sick and turned away. 

“I see. You’re the real deal,” Ash playfully batted the little bag, happy to see it didn’t repel him but merely swung at the touch of his phantom fingers. 

“Yes, me and Ibe are respected in Japan as investigators,” Eiji said proudly as he put the necklace back into his bag. 

“You look young to be a paranormal investigator.” Ash remarked.

The boy’s face turned scarlet in an instant. “I am 19 years old!” He cried, pointing a finger in Ash’s direction. “Why does everyone think I’m some kid?”   
“Eiji, what are you doing?” The Japanese man, Ibe, turned around to stare, concerned. 

Caught red handed, Eiji lowered his finger and shut his mouth. 

“Are you talking to a spirit?” Ibe crossed his arms. 

Eiji chewed his lip, bashful.

“Heh,” one of the detectives laughed. “Ghost talker.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> would you believe it if I told you I didn’t believe in ghosts  
> Anyway I'm going to try and update every Friday, though that may change as chapter lengths start to vary. Thank you for reading!


	5. The Session

“His name is Ash Lynx, and he’s not hostile. He was unaffected by the jade and clove,” Eiji insisted as he stood off with his mentor. “I think he’ll be able to help us.”

Ibe frowned, his furrowed brows creating harsh creases in his forehead. “We’re surrounded by powerful, unhappy spirits, Eiji. They might be able to withstand our methods and they’re certainly able to lie to you.”

“But Ibe, I could feel him, and he’s so much different than the others here,” Eiji argued. 

“Even if you can feel him, you’re forgetting that everyone who died here was involved in either street crime or the mafia. Is that where you want to place your trust?” Ibe’s voice sharpened.

“I want to place trust in my feelings.”

“Your feelings have been wrong before, Eiji.”

“That was only one time-”

“One time is enough!” Ibe barked suddenly. He turned red and regretful after a second of silence. “I’m sorry for yelling. I just want to take all the precautions we can. I don’t want you to get hurt again.” 

“I won’t, I think he’s trustworthy,” Eiji said stubbornly. He noticed Officer Connelly chuckling to himself while he typed in his laptop. They had relocated to a big empty room upstairs, occupied only by two tables and giant armoire. There were doors leading to a gilded outdoor balcony that was practically painted in cobwebs. The sun was beginning to set, commanding the sky all hues of orange and pink. 

“Is he here right now?” Ibe asked uncertainly, scrutinizing the space beside Eiji.

“Yes,” Eiji could feel a strong sense of loneliness to his left. The feeling of Ash’s loneliness was different from that of other spirits Eiji had felt. It was much more intense than any soul he’d ever come close to. 

“I know where tons of evidence is against Golzine that no government man has found yet,” Ash’s disconnected voice said. He sounded muted, as though EIji was wearing headphones when he spoke.

“He’ll be helpful Ibe, I swear,” Eiji pushed again. He could feel the eyes of the officers on his back. 

“Are you talking to him right now?” Ibe raised a skeptical brow. 

“He’s speaking,” Eiji admitted. “If you want to talk to him we can try the spirit box or EVP or the Ouija.”

Ibe massaged his forehead, exasperated. “We’re not using the Ouija board Eiji, this is serious.”    
“Please use the Ouija board Eiji, I am serious,” Ash demanded, humor in his tone.

“He wants to use the Ouija board,” Eiji relayed.

“I’ve used Ouija boards before,” one of the female officers suddenly jumped in. “It told me my boyfriend was cheating on me when I was fourteen.”   
“How do fourteen-year olds cheat on each other?” Officer Connelly scoffed.

“They don’t, and he didn’t. The board was wrong,” the first officer shrugged. 

“Eiji, for the love of God, I am begging you, get the board,” Ash was laughing a little. Eiji felt a bit of that coldness leave, and he smiled. 

Ibe sighed and splayed his hands in submission. “Eiji, I don’t think it’s a good idea, but I trust you, so just be safe okay? I need to talk to Max about the people who died here.”

“Yes sir,” Eiji inclined his head gratefully before rushing into his bag, rooting around to find his Ouija board. The familiar letters and frayed edges of the well-loved board greeted him as he unfolded it. He ran his fingers over the tear shaped marker- the planchette, caringly. He kept it in fine condition, with routine Clorox cleanings every week.

“Hey, kid,” the female officer who had spoken earlier appeared behind Eiji, startling him enough to drop the precious planchette. “Mind if I play?”   
“Uh, you can, uh, play,” his face burned as he placed the planchette back on the board.  _ Only we aren’t really “playing” _ , Eiji thought, not unkindly.

“Cool. It’s Eiji, right?” When he nodded, she sat down across from him. “I’m Leslie.”   
“Nice to meet you,” Eiji replied politely. 

“Look at you getting all embarrassed. She’s too old for you Eiji,” Ash teased from wherever he was. 

“I- I am not- I dropped the planchette! I’m a...” Eiji stammered to find the English word he was thinking of. “A dead person investigator who dropped the planchette!” He fumbled his words terribly, face ablaze with humiliation.

“Dead person? A _dead_ _person_ investigator?” Ash howled with laughter.

“Are you talking to that ghost?” Leslie asked, regarding Eiji curiously. 

“...Yes.” 

Ibe noticed the conversation, looking over his shoulder. He couldn’t fight the heavy sigh at the sight of the Ouija board, but he resigned to choose his battles. This wasn’t one he’d fight. 

“Let’s start,” Eiji placed his fingers on the planchette. Leslie mirrored him. “I would like to make it clear to any spirits that this board is welcome only to Ash Lynx and negative energies are not welcome. Ash, all you have to do is use the energy the two of us are offering to move the planchette to answer our questions. It’s easy.”   
Leslie smiled a little as Eiji moved the planchette in an easy circle around the board to get it warmed up. He felt Ash’s presence in his fingers within seconds.

“Okay. We’ll start with some yes or no questions,” Eiji relaxed and focused on giving his concentration to the board. “Did you die here?”

The planchette shot to the “ _ YES _ ” marker, jerking Eiji and Leslie’s hands. 

“Holy crap,” Leslie’s eyes widened. “That was so fast. Is it supposed to go that fast?”   
“Are there other spirits in this house?” Eiji continued, undisturbed. 

Once again, the planchette moved at unprecedented speeds to the “ _ 2 _ ” and the “ _ 0 _ ”.

“How many of those twenty are Golzine’s men?” 

The planchette selected the “ _ 1 _ ” and the “ _ 6 _ ”.

Leslie was bug-eyed and stiff, watching the planchette whip around the board of its own will as Eiji asked questions. Her fingers were just barely grazing it, and Eiji certainly wasn’t zinging it around like that. 

“Is that thing actually working?” One male officer called. Leslie could only nod as she stared in fascination at the board. 

“How old were you when you died?” Eiji asked.

“ _ 1 _ ” and “ _ 7 _ ”.

“What city are we in?”

“ _ N _ ”, “ _ Y _ ”, and “ _ C _ ”.

“Neither of you are doing that?” Another officer asked. He had approached without either of them noticing. He snickered. “I don’t believe that.”

The planchette steadily rose off the board on its own and swiveled its point like the head of an owl toward the officer. Both Eiji and Leslie’s arms were stretched to keep their fingers on top of the device. Leslie muttered curses a mile a minute under her breath but held steady. 

“Ash,” Eiji scolded gently. “Be serious.”   
The planchette sunk. It almost felt reluctant. 

“Jason, either sit down or go away,” Leslie said quietly.

The officer, Jason, slowly sat down beside Leslie, giving the board a wide berth. His eyes were blown wide in astonishment. Or fear.

One by one, the other officers came to sit in a ring outside the board. Whenever they made a discrediting remark or joke, Ash would whip the planchette into the air as if to challenge them and Eiji had to coax it back down to the board. Ibe and Max even came to stand over the group.

“What was the name of the man who owned this mansion?” Eiji asked. 

“ _ D _ ”, “ _ I _ ”, “ _ N _ ”, “ _ O _ ”.

“Hold on,” Max interjected. Eiji had watched his face grow less doubtful and more apprehensive as the session continued. He hefted a thick yellow file and began to sift through the papers. “Let me ask questions neither of you could know the answer to.”

“Eiji will have to be the one to actually ask the question since he’s the medium, you’ll have to write it down,” Ibe instructed.

“Fine by me,” Max huffed. He scrawled on a piece of paper and laid it down beside Eiji’s knee. 

“Who did Golzine hire to capture Ash Lynx?” Eiji read. His stomach twisted, realizing he didn’t even know the answer to this question. He really knew absolutely nothing about Ash except that he’d been killed in the mansion at the age of 17. He hadn’t asked why he was there or his affiliation with Golzine. What kind of life had he lived? Was he actually dangerous?   
“ _ F _ ”, ” _ O _ ”, “ _ X _ ”, “ _ X _ ”, the board spelled.

Max glanced quickly to his files. “That’s right. Okay, if this is really Ash Lynx, he should be able to answer this.”

Another paper was laid by Eiji’s lap. 

“What was the name of Aslan J. Callenreese’s brother?” Eiji read. He felt dirty interrogating Ash like this, putting him on the spot for these prying questions that he didn’t even know the answer to.

The planchette slowed as it spelled out the word “ _ Griffin _ ”. Sadness hung suspended in the air like fog. Eiji’s heart became a heavy stone in his chest and a tear escaped his left eye.  _ Who is Aslan Callenreese? _ He wondered briefly but decided to focus back onto the board. 

Max’s eyes got hard and cold. He watched the planchette like it was an unpredictable animal. “One more.” 

A final note fluttered down beside Eiji.

“What was the name of the Chinese man that the Banana Fish drug was tested on in this mansion who was killed that same day?” Eiji sputtered out. The room began to blur softly. 

The board was still. 

Suddenly overwhelmed with foreign grief, Eiji keeled over, shaking with inexplicable sobs. His fingers felt glued to the planchette, so he looked almost as if he were praying to some god.

“Ei-chan, are you okay?” Ibe called frantically.

Eiji could barely nod, all language gone to him as he was racked with painful sobs. His eyes were waterfalls, and all he could feel was gut-wrenching emptiness and self-loathing.

“We need to close the session,” Ibe hurried to kneel beside Eiji, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder. 

“Wait!” Max exclaimed. “It’s moving.”

“ _ S _ ”.

Still shaking with sobs, Eiji managed to watch the board as he hunched over. His vision fuzzed with tears.

“ _ H _ ”.

“ _ O _ ”.

“ _ R _ ”.

“ _ T _ ”.

“ _ E _ ”.

“ _ R _ ”.

“Okay, you’ve got an answer, now close the session, Eiji,” Ibe urged.

Eiji strained to sit back up as he shook. The pain was ebbing, and he could form words again. “T-thank you f-for your t-time,” he stuttered out, and slid the planchette to rest on “ _ GOODBYE _ ”.

The pain and shakes faded instantly, his eyes drying as though he’d never cried so violently. Eiji felt like he’d just relaxed after an intense workout, his muscles rubbery and soft. His hands finally left the board. The room twirled once, twice, and Eiji blacked out to both living and dead voices calling out to him. 

 

_ A blonde boy, no older than eight or nine, sat sobbing in the center of a halfmade bed. His clothes were a mess of rips and stains, his hair disheveled and skin powdered with bruises. A gun was gripped tightly in his soft, tiny childish hand as he cried. The sheets beneath him were splattered startling red, as stark and bright as the moon in the night sky.  _

Poor child _ , Eiji managed to think before the scene shifted entirely, everything fading into white before he reemerged somewhere else. The same messy head of blonde hair was crouched before a man in a wheelchair. The boy was much older, a gun on his belt instead of in his hands. His eyes were the most vivid green Earth could offer and cried tears as warm as spring. The man sat before him was slack-jawed with a dead gaze. He had the same face as the blonde, but none of the green life.  _

_ “Griff, do you know who I am…?” the blonde gripped the armrest of the wheelchair while he cried. “Do you recognize me?” _

_ Again, Eiji was pulled out of the scene and into a fog, only to emerge in a dark dungeon. The blonde was in a fine white button up and black trousers. He looked like he could’ve been going to a formal event, if not for the cut leaking blood from his neck, the chains suspending his wrists above him, and the fountain from his eyes. A young man frayed by deep cuts lay dying on the floor in front of him. Staggering above him with a knife dripping red, a Chinese man with a plume of purple sprouting from his shaved head, crying and screaming for release. A gun lay at the blonde’s feet.  _

_ Once more, Eiji was whisked away before he could grasp the situation. The blonde boy now lay on a tiled floor, his clothes peppered with ruby red blood splatters. The black handle of a knife jutted from his chest, lodged firmly below his heart. His eyes were still a startling green, but fuzzy with death. His breathing was shallow, barely even present. _

_ Three corpses in all black were scattered around the room near the boy. The vermillion pools had stretched so wide that some mixed with one another.  _

_ Dreadful loneliness pooled in Eiji’s heart. He only managed the thought,  _ Ash? _ before he was startled awake. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y’all just wanted to say thanks for all the love I’ve been betting on this little story of mine- you guys are the best!


	6. The Night

Eiji’s head passed straight through Ash’s hand.

Never before had Ash felt so frustrated with his lack of a solid form. First, he wrecked Eiji with his emotions during the Ouija session. Then he couldn’t even catch him when he passed out from the strain. He had used too much energy throughout the evening to solidify any part of his body.

Ibe at least was there to stop him from hitting his head on the floor. He cleared Eiji’s bangs from his face and propped him up against the wall. Eiji’s chin dropped to his chest. Ibe tilted his head back up and listened carefully to his breathing. Ash stewed with guilt every second Eiji was unconscious, pacing like a madman.  _ Is he actually hurt? _

“He’ll be fine,” Ibe finally said with a sigh. Ash felt unfamiliar relief wash over him like a cool wave. “He just took on too much too fast is all. Give him some rest and he’ll be good as new.”

“Speaking of rest, do you have a place to stay for the night? It’s getting dark,” Max gestured out the glass doors to the balcony, where the world was slipping into night. The trees were already black against the purple sky.

Ibe chewed his lip. “Usually when we’re investigating a site this active we prefer to stay through the night. That's when the spirits have more energy to communicate. But I don’t think I should keep Eiji here much longer. Poor boy must be absolutely exhausted.”

“There’s a motel less than twenty minutes from here up North,” Max’s number two, Officer Beauregard offered. “I could drive you if you want to take care of Eiji.”

“Thank you, but there’s no need,” Ibe squeezed Eiji’s hand. Ash dropped down to squat by Eiji, observing him closely. The angel boy seemed distressed in his unconscious state, his face tight and sweat gathering on his brow. Yet he still glowed warmly.

“I might need help carrying him out to the van though if he’s out for much longer.” Ibe pursed his lips.

“No problem,” Max smiled. “Do you want to package up his board?”

“Sure,” Ibe dropped Eiji’s hand and slowly rose in true old man style. Ash considered playing with the planchette, but decided to sit beside Eiji instead. The radiant boy looked like he might start crying in his sleep.

_ I want to comfort him…  _ Ash thought dimly. _ I hope he isn’t freaked out now after what I pulled with the board. Oh God, what if he hates me now? I completely overwhelmed him- he might choose not to come back. Plus there are enemies everywhere in this mansion, why would he come back tomorrow? _

Ash sighed bed his forehead as if it could ease his tension. He couldn’t wait another thirty years for a chance to be heard. He’d lose himself before then.

Frustration clogged his throat like bile. Ash clenched his teeth and slammed his fist against the wall. The detectives startled and whipped their heads to look at Eiji- or rather the emptiness next to him.

_ So they heard that huh, _ Ash scoffed to himself as they glanced between each other nervously.

“Is something wrong?” Ibe asked in Ash’s direction, still holding Eiji’s Ouija board.

“No, I’m just thinking to myself,” Ash declared, knowing full well his words would land on deaf ears.

Ibe lingered a second more before he stood and hefted both his and Eiji’s bags over his shoulders. “I think we’ve overstayed our welcome for today. Max, could you get him?” He cocked his head toward Eiji.

“I’m on it. Are you sure he shouldn’t see a doctor or something?” Max said as he strode over. Ash gave Eiji’s shining hand one last squeeze.

“No, this has happened quite a bit befo-”

“Gah!” Eiji shot awake, cutting Ibe off and gulping air like it’s the only thing he knew how to do. His eyes were frantic and glassy and he shook like a leaf in the wind. He whipped his head around the room, almost like he was searching for something.

“Ei-chan, breathe, how do you feel?” Ibe knelt down and rested his hand on Eiji’s shoulder.

Eiji shuddered and took a deep breath. “I’m fine. I am so sorry, how long was that?”

“No more than five minutes,” Ibe clasped Eiji’s hand and pulled him to his feet. After stumbling once, Eiji was stable enough to stand. He swallowed nervously and wrung his hands while his eyes continued to shoot around the room. Everything stilled when his gaze landed on Ash, still curled up on the floor.

“Are you okay?”

Ash froze for a second.  _ Is he talking to me? What does he mean? He’s the one who passed out from exhaustion! _

“Ei-chan, what are you doing?” Ibe asked, his expression almost as bewildered as Ash felt.

“Ash?” Eiji held his hand out. Inviting the dead to take it. Like he was crazy.

Ash wasn’t thinking. He just stood up and grabbed Eiji’s hand like a lifeline, relishing in the warmth of life. Eiji didn’t startle. He squeezed Ash’s hand and brushed his thumb over Ash’s knuckles and smiled.

Too many emotions crowded Ash’s mind for him to identify, but he knew one thing. He liked this. He liked the Japanese boy’s smile and his warmth. The heat was like a guilty pleasure, creating a haze that Ash drank in like liquor, intoxicating.

But Eiji seemed unwell. His drooping eyelids and uncharacteristic slouch contradicting his pleasant smile. Ash forced himself to snap out of it and tug his hand away, for Eiji’s sake. “What’s going on with you? Are you feeling okay?”

“I’m sorry you had to go through that,” Eiji pulled his hand back and dipped his head.

_ Is he talking about with the Ouija board? _ Ash rolled his next words over on his tongue, trying to keep the mood at least somewhat calm. “You’re weird. What are you apologizing for?”

“You’re brother and your friend and your childhood and,” Eiji’s brows knitted in sadness. It wasn’t a good look on him. “And everything. I just wish you didn’t have to go through that.”

Ash felt the walls he’d spent his life grooming climb to the surface. He didn’t want to think about Griffin, or Shorter, and especially not his childhood. “It’s whatever,” he said. His words came out harsher than intended. “I think you need to go.”

Eiji flinched like he’d been struck.

_ What am I doing… _

“Okay, I’ll go. See you tomorrow Ash. Good night.” Eiji bit his lip, eyes downcast, and took his bag from Ibe.

“Ei-chan, is something wrong?” Ibe shoved his hands awkwardly in his pockets.

“No. I think I’d like to get some sleep though. Bye everyone, nice to meet you,” Eiji waved politely. Ibe exchanged hurried goodbyes with the officers, then followed Eiji down the stairs.

Ash felt his chest buckle in on itself when his shining figure disappeared.

That night felt too much like the first one Ash had spent alone. Every corner of the mansion was too dark, the silence too still. His isolation was painfully blatant. He had wedged himself into the corner of the library and tucked his head between his knees. Kept his breathing low and presence lower. He clung to the flimsy sense of protection of having his back and side guarded like a child. The great space around him seemed mockingly empty with no life to occupy it. And in that lonely darkness he found himself wondering what Eiji was doing.

The dead didn’t sleep, so Ash always spent his nights buckled down in a quiet area to be with his thoughts until morning. Then the people showed back up and he could watch them for entertainment. He used to read books through the night, but he went through the whole library twice in the first year. Not to mention the energy it took to flip solid pages all night was quite demanding.

Tonight he missed sleep more than anything. His mind kept drifting back to Eiji’s stricken face when he’d snapped at him, telling him he should go. What was that? Was he upset? And what exactly did Eiji know or feel that made him apologize to Ash like he did?

_ This is pathetic,  _ Ash thought grimly. _ I was lonely for most of my life and death, but I’ve never lamented over someone I’d just met like this. What is wrong with me today? Have I actually gotten that desperate? _

_ Whatever. He won’t be here tomorrow and I’ll forget him soon enough… _

Ash felt a dagger of unease in his spine. He glanced up, already knowing what he’d see.

One of Golzine’s men wandered in, surveying the room with a fire in his eyes. His form was the only light in the room, save for the few peeks of moonlight glaring through boarded up windows. His glow wasn’t like Eiji’s. It wasn’t warm, it was nasty and cold and seemed to drink in the little life around it.

Ash kept still as a statue and kept his soul squashed as low as it could go. A fight with one of Golzine’s cronies was the last thing he needed.

The man was stiff with anger, phantom muscles tense. He had a tattoo crawling up his face and still wore the suit he was shot in. A dark hole in his forehead was oozing even darker matter. Something about the twisted gleam in his eyes screamed  _ danger _ , stay away. If he knew anything, Ash knew better than to doubt his polished instincts.

“Ash Lynx, we know you’re here,” he drawled. His voice was like nails on a chalkboard.

Ash was unmoving while his mind raced. He must’ve let his guard down when he was with Eiji, and someone had seen him. Thirty years of hard work keeping himself unknown, gone in a day. Now every moment from then on would be spent hiding from wolfish men who were scouring the mansion for him.

The man turned and scanned the room. “Come on Ash, be reasonable. We’re all in the same boat here. The least we can do is help each other out.” His tone shifted to welcoming, so fake it was almost sickening. Ash had fallen for the facade of kindness before, in his younger, less experienced life. He knew a trap when he saw one.

When Ash still didn’t answer, the man’s ghostly form burned like an ember. His anger was rancid and overpowering in the air, like a thick fog. Ash thought he might suffocate in it.

Trembling with rage, the man threw one of the library’s lamps across the room. It shattered with a sound like a cat’s screech. “You can’t hide forever!”

_ Idiot _ , Ash thought to himself.  _ I’ve been hiding for thirty years. Do you think I max out at thirty years? I can go forever. _

With one last clumsy survey of the room, the man snarled and thundered from the library. The scent of stale blood left with him, and Ash finally relaxed a little.

Though they had yet to see him, the fact still remained that Golzine’s men knew he had stuck around after death as well. And he, like them, was stuck in the wretched walls of the mansion for eternity.

 

The rest of the night passed without incident, and the police came back within ten minutes of the sun rising. Both Ibe and Eiji joined them a half hour later.

Eiji looked worse for wear, his eyes rimmed by dark bags and his hair a bird’s nest on his head. He squirmed and fidgeted with a big black camera while the adults discussed the day’s plan.

Ash approached Eiji like he would a wild deer, trying to avoid startling him. He’d forgotten how bright this boy was. Everything dull and lifeless seemed brilliant in his presence.

Eiji looked up at him when he stood about a foot away. “Ash?” His voice came out reluctant, as though he feared an answer. 

“Hey. You don’t look like you got much sleep.” Ash replied casually.

“I didn’t,” Eiji laughed without humor. Somehow he managed to look Ash straight in the eye. “Did I make you mad yesterday?”

“No,” Ash sighed. “You were just all apologetic for no reason out of nowhere. And you were talking about...certain things. I was unnerved.”

Eiji chewed his lip absentmindedly for a moment, considering. “When I passed out, I saw you. When you were alive.”

An emotion Ash couldn’t place flared up in his chest. He knew he didn’t like people just knowing stuff about him, but neither he nor Eiji chose for his life to be revealed. Neither of them carried any blame, but he still felt the chill of privacy violated.

“What did you see?” Ash put an effort into keeping his voice level. At the very least he didn’t want Eiji thinking he was mad again.

Eiji hesitated once more before speaking. “Y-you were a little boy on a bed, with a gun in your hands. You were very, very scared.”

Ash’s skin prickled with disdain at the memory.

“Then you were with your brother, Griffin,” Eiji continued. “And then there was a man with purple hair in a dungeon, and then you died in the kitchen.”

The words hung in the air, waiting for Ash to do something with them. Eiji had seen the lowest points of Ash’s life, stuff he didn’t even tell the gang members he lived with about. There was a sense of injustice somewhere that Eiji knew everything Ash hadn’t wanted him to know. Angelic as he was, this boy was in essence a stranger. A stranger that knew the worst of Ash. Knew the ugliness and grime underneath Ash’s masquerade of cool aloofness.

“...Are you mad now?” Eiji seemed to be shrinking in on himself waiting for Ash to reply.

“No...I don’t think so,” Ash focused on the boy before him. His hoodie was too big, his jeans too short. His socks didn’t match, and his tennis shoes were well-worn and faded. How could he look so plain and still glow as he did?  _ And why am I not mad? _

“I really am sorry you had to go through that. You didn’t deserve it and you still don’t,” Eiji’s voice got surprisingly tougher like he was trying to prove a point.

“Don’t say that until you know what I’ve done, Eiji,” Ash grimaced. He’d killed eleven of Golzine’s men that were trapped here. The blood of friends, family, and strangers was painted on his hands by his mistakes.

“Nothing you’ve done could make me think otherwise,” Eiji said, his face set in determination. He somehow looked strong despite the exhaustion he was fighting.

Ash gave a dry huff of laughter. “You mean you’re not at all scared of a dead murderer? I’ve killed people y’ know.”

Eiji’s face didn’t even shift. “You are different, Ash. I can feel the angry men here. Ruthless killers feel distinct and frightening and I can’t stand to be near them. But you feel lonely, Ash. You never felt joy when killing, did you?”

Before Ash could respond, Ibe called Eiji to rejoin the main group. Apparently, the  officers were having the most difficulty investigating Dino’s bedroom. The Japanese were wanted to try and identify spiritual interference. Ash followed Eiji upstairs, pausing before he could enter Dino’s room. The doorway loomed before him like the maw of a beast waiting to swallow him whole. A dark, predatorial presence he knew well.

_ Grimy fingers roaming his skin… foul breath on his neck… _

Eiji reached his hand out, feeling around for Ash. His fingers brushed through the ghost’s arm like he wasn't even there.

“I’ll hang out here with you,” Eiji said, stepping out of the doorframe and sitting down on the floor.

“Why?” Ash questioned, though he sat down alongside him anyway.

“I can tell you don’t want to go in there, and I don’t want to leave you alone,” Eiji pulled his camera off from around his neck.

“They’ll probably need you in there though,” Ash argued.

“Then I’ll go in and do what is needed then come right back,” Eiji answered like it was obvious.

“Why are you hanging around me? I don’t want your pity,” Ash leaned closer to Eiji’s face, trying to read him better.

“Maybe I actually enjoy talking to you and this isn’t out of pity,” Eiji suggested with a bright, sincere grin. Ash soaked up his smile like a sponge, and Dino’s room was forgotten.

“I can’t blame you for that, I make excellent conversation,” Ash joked. The tension he seemed to always carry drained away from his phantom limbs.

“Yes, and your humility is my favorite quality,” Eiji teased back.

“Not my charming wit or dashing intelligence?” Ash leaned closer to the angel boy. The warmth was intoxicating.

“Those are fine too,” Eiji rolled his eyes and started rooting around his bag with his full attention.

“Whatcha doing there?” Ash leaned over to watch Eiji rummage.

“I didn’t get anything to eat this morning, I’m hungry,” he explained. “Aha!”

Eiji pumped his fist in the air. In it, he clutched some kind of generic protein bar. He held it like it was a trophy.

“You’re weirdly dramatic,” Ash commented with a snicker.

“That’s not news. Hey, can you eat anything?” Eiji fumbled to pull the dull wrapper apart. “Do you know?”

“I thought you were a ghost expert, shouldn’t you know?” He tried to make a joke out of it, but in truth, he had no idea if he could eat. It wouldn’t make sense if he could. He wasn’t even solid.

“I’ve never had long conversations with ghosts before though,” Eiji bit into his bar. His eyes drifted to the ceiling. “Most of the time they’re incoherent or angry or don’t want to talk.”

“Who on Earth wouldn’t want to talk to you?”

“Oh shut up,” Eiji chuckled, then his face sunk. “I feel bad eating if you can't.”

“Don’t feel bad, eat your breakfast,” Ash found his consideration annoyingly endearing. “I haven’t missed eating that much.”

“Try it,” Eiji broke off a bit of his bar and held it out.

Ash stared at it for a second. “This is dumb,” he declared as he took it from Eiji’s hand.

“It’s weird to see a floating chunk of a granola bar,” Eiji giggled. “What determines the stuff you can or can’t touch?”

“I can touch just about anything,” Ash answered. “The more complex the movement or the longer it lasts, the more energy it takes. What I’m able to do depends completely on my energy level.”

While Eiji considered that, Ash bit into the chunk of granola. He was very aware of Eiji’s eyes on him.

To his surprise, he could taste the chocolate and oats. He felt like he might start crying- this cheap bar tasted amazing. When had food been so good? Why had he neglected to eat so often in his life when there was stuff like this incredible bar?

“That’s odd,” Eiji said. “Did you eat it?”

“Yeah, it tasted great,” Ash smiled, savoring the taste of chocolate.

“...It’s literally on the floor.”

“Huh?”

“Here,” Eiji reached over, _ through Ash’s ghostly gut _ , and grabbed the same chunk of the bar off the floor. Ash gagged at a sudden feeling of intense nausea. He leaped up, squirming to try and get rid of the discomfort drenching his body.

“Oh my god, never do that again,” Ash said, fighting to keep down non-existent bile.

“Do what?” Eiji looked around innocently. “Was that- wait- did- oh my god did I stick my hand  _ through you _ ?”

“Quite a lot, yeah,” Ash took a deep breath and sat back down as the unease subsided.

“I am so sorry!” Eiji covered his blistering face in embarrassment. “I thought that air was weirdly cold!”

“Am I cold?”

“Apparently!” Eiji near wailed, clasping his hands together like he was about to pray. “I am so sorry!”

“It’s okay, man, chill,” Ash laughed. “It was just unpleasant.”

“Eiji, everything alright out there?” Ibe called.

“We’re good, Ibe-san!” Eiji replied, his cheeks  returning to their normal color.

“...You’re with Ash aren’t you?” Ibe sounded tired.

“...A little?”

“Be safe,” Ibe sighed. The officers again became background noise.

Ash chuckled when Eiji rolled his eyes and took a defiant bite of his bar. The lovely lightheartedness didn’t last though. Ash was struck with familiar paranoia and  suppressed his presence within a second. Eiji noticed something too, turning down the hallway with big eyes.

For a long moment, they both stared down in silence. Then footsteps.

Eiji scrambled into his bag and whipped out his necklace, clutching it  against his chest. “Ibe,” he called. “Something hostile is coming.”

“What?” The senior Japanese replied.

Ash narrowed his eyes as the footsteps grew louder. There was more than one angry soul coming.

“Hostile spirits!” Eiji shouted.

Four of Golzine’s men, at last, came into view at the end of the hallway. The tattooed one Ash had avoided last night stood at the front. The air around him wavered like it was a hot summer day despite how viciously cold the spirits were. They were absolutely livid.

And they were all looking at Eiji.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why did I make every chapter start with “the”.  
> I thought it’d be neat but it’s just a pain honestly   
> Anyway I hope you enjoyed!


	7. The Soldiers

  
  
  
  


Even holding his protective necklace in an iron grip, Eiji had never felt more terrified. These people were murderous, and as soon as they’d approached, Eiji was no longer able to feel Ash. He was very suddenly alone.

With nothing but  _ fear fear fear _ pulsing through his veins, Eiji hurried into Golzine’s room. Ibe was sat on the floor with his thermal camera and EVP recorder in front of him, the officers watching. Their eyes bugged when Eiji crashed down behind Ibe.

“Are you okay? Who’s coming?” Ibe asked, holding Eiji’s wrists to keep him steady.

“Golzine’s men, they want to kill someone,” he gasped between choppy breaths.

Ibe set to work at once, pulling a Ziploc bag filled with brown powder and yellow petals from his backpack. “I need everyone to get together, now, as close as you can.”

The officers obeyed without hesitation, crowding into a corner. Ibe had to drag a shaking Eiji in with them before spreading out the mixture of powder and yellow petals.

“What is this, Ibe?” Max asked, surveying the circle with suspicious eyes.

“Clove and agrimony,” Ibe said. “It’s pretty reliable for keeping negativity away.”

“How do we know there’s negativity?” Leslie questioned, looking at the apparently empty room.

“We’re trusting Eiji right now,”  Ibe set his jaw and rubbed calming circles on Eiji’s shoulder. He was still wheezing for breath.

They stood there for what could’ve been a minute or an hour- Eiji was too disoriented his the fog of fear to tell. It was far too quiet for the intense presence of anger he felt.

“What are we doing?” Officer Beauregard's face screwed up and he huffed. “This is ridiculous.”

 “Officer, I’m warning you not to leave this border.” Ibe’s voice was deadly serious.

“You expect me to believe that these plants will protect me from ghosts? Please!” Beauregard scoffed, moving away from the clutter of people.

“Emmet, don’t,” Max Lobo warned.

Eiji’s shaking increased as he suffocated in the stench of murderous desire. They were in the room, they were in the room, _ they were in the room. _

“You’re telling me you believe this garbage, Max?” Officer Beauregard snarled, his face burning with frustration. “I thought you were better than that. I am not going to listen to some loony ghost hunter when I have a job to do!”

With that, Beauregard stormed out of the protection of the clove and agrimony. Eiji managed to lift his shaking fingers toward him, a last-ditch effort. “Wait...don’t…”

Emmet Beauregard turned to gloat for a second, and Eiji realized too late that he was under an influence.

Then his head erupted in a spray of blood and glass.

Leslie shrieked somewhere behind him. Eiji launched into action, suppressing his fear and scrambling to Beauregard’s side. The remains of a shattered mirror were scattered around his head. His face gushed red from various cuts and gashes. With gentle hands, Eiji delicately pulled the shards of glass from his flesh. A spurt of blood followed each one and Eiji immediately pressed a towel to his wounds. Beauregard groaned beneath him, his lips parted enough for blood to flow into his mouth. Eiji pushed his mouth closed and reached for his bag containing medical supplies.

“Ei-chan, get back in here!” Ibe hissed in Japanese. His eyes were blown to the size of golf balls as he reached towards his student,  just outside the circle.

Eiji only had time to reply with, “He’s hurt!” before the fear in his blood morphed into horror greater than he'd ever known. He thought it would kill him.

_ I dropped the jade _ , he thought and looked to where it gleamed inside the ring of clove and agrimony.

He shot through the air and slammed against the opposing wall, thrown at least ten feet. His shoulder popped and back splintered with pain as he crashed to the floor. The room twirled around him like he was a spinning top.

“Ei-chan!” Ibe screamed.

Eiji struggled to pull himself up, his right side burning with pain in response to any movement. His whole body was gripped with a stinging ache, and a steady groan escaped his mouth without his knowing. His head pulsed with roaring agony and vision went spotty.

_ What was that...how can they be that strong? _ Eiji wondered, half-coherent.  _ Everything hurts… _

“Eiji, are you okay?” a familiar, muted voice called to him.

“Ugh…” he managed to get into a sitting position, cradling his throbbing wrist. “Ash...?”

“Hold on, I’ve got you,” the voice came again. Something warm brushed against Eiji’s forehead, clearing his bangs from his eyes. The spinning black spots faded from his vision and the pain dulled a little. He almost felt protected.

The air before him shook. Too many alien feelings were rushing around Eiji’s system for him to place, but he felt one thing for certain. He felt Ash’s indignant, protective rage.

_ It’s Ash, _ Eiji realized through his stupor.  _ Ash is here. _

A small pad of paper lifted off one of Dino’s dressers and went hurtling towards Eiji’s weak form.

It snapped back with twice the force, hitting the wall and scattering into a hundred loose sheets.

_ He’s got me _ , Eiji swayed, sank against the wall, and tried to regulate his snared breathing.  _ Ash is here. _

He allowed his vision to focus back in on the scene. Officer Beauregard still lay in a growing pool of crimson, the mirror shards glinting. Connelly was inching out of the clove and agrimony and reaching for the fallen officer. Leslie had fainted against Ibe as he set up his thermal camera and spirit box with trembling hands. They all wore the same expression of electric terror.

The dresser to Eiji’s right exploded into millions of small splinters with no warning. He had time to hide his head before hundreds impaled his skin and ripped through his clothes. Someone screamed somewhere.

“Eiji! Keep your head down!” Ash’s voice called.

Eiji could only nod. He clenched his teeth against the terrible pain and sensation of blood dripping. His arm, his leg, his side- all riddled with splinters.

_ Crash! _

Mirror after mirror shattered into sparkling chunks of glass in awful succession. Everyone’s shrieks mixed into an unholy chorus.

_ Make it stop… _ Eiji thought. He might have whimpered.  _ Please make it stop… _

“Eiji! Catch!” Ibe shouted, hefting the jade and clove necklace in his hand.

Forcing himself up took great effort. When the charm sailed through the air, Eiji managed to catch it with his flimsy left hand. His wrist and shoulder raged in protest at the movement.

Clarity was bestowed upon Eiji’s muddled mind like a gift. To his utmost surprise, he could see someone faintly in front of him. A transparent, muddy figure with blonde hair.

“Ash,” Eiji reached his splinter filled arm toward him, flinching when some fell. “I see you…”

The figure whipped around frantically. Eiji felt his panic. “Stay put Eiji! I’ve got you!”

 “That’s good,” Eiji’s arm dropped and his head lolled like he was a doll.

Ash dissipated in a flurry when Ibe came crashing through where he had been. He wore a necklace like Eiji’s.

“Hold on Ei-chan, we’re getting out of here sooner than you know. It’ll be okay,” he fretted in Japanese. He lifted Eiji into a gentle fireman’s carry, careful not to press on any of the splinters, and hurried back to safety.

“Ibe, what is happening?” Max’s voice was steady, like a trained soldier under fire.

“Take a look,” Ibe nodded to his camera. “I think Ash Lynx is protecting us.”

Eiji squinted at the thermal camera. He could see four bright orange figures standing off with a single one. They appeared to be...yelling at each other?

“What are they doing?” Eiji mumbled to himself.

The single figure, Ash, glowed a hot white on the camera. Everyone’s hair began to float as the air buzzed with electricity. A single second of baited silence.

Eiji sucked in a sharp breath.

And the room was flooded with blinding white light, like a lightning strike from inside. Anything glass exploded into shards as though they'd been shot. The air shocked with an unnerving, otherworldly current. Just as soon as it came, the light vanished and everyone’s hair fell as gravity returned its hold.

Eiji took quick breaths and whipped his head around the now silent room. He could feel no spirits, neither the soldiers nor Ash.

“They’re gone,” Ibe whispered, glancing from his camera to the room. “We need to get out of here right now.”

Max carried Officer Beauregard out and Ibe helped Eiji walk out to the van. No one spoke until they were off the property and standing in the street by their cars.

After carefully setting Eiji down in the back of the van, Ibe turned to face the adults. “We have never experienced anything like that.”

“I still don’t understand what happened,” Officer Connelly's voice deflated. “Were the ghosts...fighting?”

“I think. I’ve only ever seen a spirit act aggressive toward another once. But that only resulted in a broken vase and some books falling down,” Ibe’s hands shook as he loaded his gear into the van. “This was of an unseen caliber.”

“Regardless of what happened,” Max’s commanding voice tore everyone’s eyes to him. “We’ve got injured people who need to go to the hospital. We can discuss this and our next steps when they’ve been treated."

“Good idea,” an officer Eiji wasn’t familiar with said. He vaguely recalled his face as one of the skeptics, the one Leslie called Jacob. “Emmet doesn’t look too hot, and that boy of yours might have a concussion.”

“I’m okay,” Eiji piped up, as loudly as he could, which was only a breathy whisper. They couldn’t hear him, and he didn’t have the strength to yell.

“Right. I’m taking Eiji in the van, anyone else need a ride?” Ibe surveyed the group.

Leslie raised a trembling hand.

“Okay,” Ibe nodded and pulled his keys out. “I’d like you to sit in the back with Eiji and take care of him.”

Leslie nodded and climbed in. She looked at Eiji with eyes the size of golf balls. Her skin was chalky and glistened with sweat, and he could only stare back at her.

“Follow me, I’ll lead us,” Max ordered as he ducked into his police car. Officer Beauregard and Jacob sat in the back. Officer Connelly and the officer Eiji had yet to speak to, a curly-haired woman, got into a car together. Ibe slammed the van door shut.

“Are you okay?” Eiji asked nervously, as Leslie sank to the floor beside him and curled in on herself. “That was very scary, you’re probably shaken up. But it’s okay, it’s over now.”

Leslie slowly raised her head and turned to face him with her huge eyes. She took three heavy inhales.

“Ha, yeah, I’m fine,” her lips twitched into an unnerving smile. “Just saw people get tossed around like toys by the air, so maybe I’m a little discombobulated right now.”

Eiji chewed his lip thoughtfully. “They were just people,” he tried to keep his voice reasonable. “Angry people who did want to hurt us, but we’re away from them now. They can’t do anything”

“Not to mention the fact that Emmet’s head was completely shredded by a flying mirror.” Leslie continued as if Eiji had never spoken. “It’s impossible.”

Eiji paused. Should he tell her that it was entirely possible? That it had, in fact, happened? They’d had a very high stakes encounter with multiple aggressive spirits that had hurt them.

_ The sudden proof of spiritual presences is overwhelming _ , he thought.  _ Her reality is changing, no wonder she’s uneasy. _

“I know you’re scared right now, but I promise you, everything is fine. It’s still the same world you’ve always lived in,” Eiji turned to observe her, wary of her reaction. She was still for some moments.

“Why are you saying that!” She shrieked suddenly. The shrill noise was a knife in Eiji’s aching head, and he flinched away. “You’ve still got wood sticking out of your arm! And you got thrown across the freaking room by absolutely nothing! There was nothing there! A-and everything still just- just exploded! And Emmet got n-nailed by a m-mirror that moved on its own! That’s not possible!”

“What’s going on?” Ibe turned around in the front seat, his brow knitted with worry.

“I don’t think Leslie’s okay,” Eiji answered in Japanese, scared to set her off even further.

“Shut up!  _ Shut up! _ ” She screamed, grabbing fistfuls of her hair. “Are you talking about me? Don’t talk about me! Everything that happened is completely impossible and you  _ are talking about me! _ You think I’m crazy or stupid, don’t you?”

Eiji’s heart pounded in his chest, and he started to scoot away. Despite the pain it inflicted, her sporadic behavior set him on edge so much he couldn't be so close.

“I wasn’t talking about you Leslie, I’m just worried about you,” Eiji said, as gently as he could.

She wailed like an injured animal. “I’m not crazy, am I? I must be, I’m going completely crazy! That couldn’t have happened! There’s no way!” Her eyes were wild with panic, darting all over the van like she was trying to see everything at once.

“Ei-chan, I’m sorry, but try to keep her as calm as you can until we get to the hospital.” Ibe instructed as he started to follow Max off the property. “Make sure she doesn’t hurt herself.”

“You’re already treating me like I’m insane!” Leslie was half laughing half crying now. “How far off my rocker must I be! You think I’m crazy too! Why am I so freaking scared right now?”

“You’re scared because you just experienced something traumatic and horrible, Leslie. You’re not crazy, you’re scared, and that’s normal,” Eiji tried to sound calmer than he felt. In truth he could barely hear his own words over the thunderous beating of his heart in his ears. He could barely think through the nagging pain coating his body and filling his head like a cloud.

“B-but you’re injuries, you were  _ thrown- _ ”

“I know, but we’re away from them now. They won’t be hurting or throwing anyone else any time soon,” Eiji pushed a smile to his face. “It’s all okay now. We’re going to the hospital now, and everything is going to be taken care of.”

“You promise? I’m- I’m not crazy?” Leslie finally seemed to be regaining herself. Her breathing was steadily regulating.

“I promise,” Eiji leaned forward and winced in pain, but didn’t let his smile fall. “There’s nothing at all wrong with you. Everything is going to be fine.”

 

Leslie didn't speak another word for the entirety of the ten-minute ride to the hospital. They made good time with a police escort and Eiji met with a doctor after only five minutes of waiting. The remaining splinters were removed from his right arm, leg, and the side of his stomach. An X-ray showed his left shoulder to be dislocated and wrist sprained. Though he did have a nasty knot on the back of his head, he was concussion-free. The doctor noticed  irregularities in his ankle. Eiji explained his pole vaulting injury. The doctor asked if the ankle still bothered him.

Eiji wanted to joke and ask  _ Physically or emotionally? _ but in the end answered “No, it hasn’t hurt for a while.”

His wounds were disinfected and bandaged. There were so many cuts littering his right side that he almost felt like a mummy when they were all wrapped. His wrist was in a cast, and he had a sling to keep his shoulder from moving too much. The doctor gave him a bottle of painkillers and asked him to come in for a follow up to remove the cast and sling. Then they’d put him in a rehabilitation program to regain full range of motion with his shoulder. The whole time, the cover story of taking a nasty fall was never questioned. Then he was released.

Officer Beauregard appeared to have no memory of the whole incident. He said the last thing he remembered was getting in his car that morning. He was released after his face was disinfected and bandaged. Once again, Eiji had the urge to joke that together they would be a full mummy, but no one seemed to be in the mood for humor.

With everyone treated a collective hunger hit the group like lightning. They arranged to meet at a small chain restaurant a couple minutes away for lunch.

And while there, they all knew what question they’d have to answer.

_ What now? _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh no!1!!1!
> 
> Some bad news- I will be unable to update next Friday, as I've got family in town and am taking driver's ed (yippee) so I won't have much time to write. Unless something big happens, expect the next update on the 19th.   
> Thanks for reading!


	8. The Return

The Golzine property was empty the next day. No police cars pulled up, no vans, no people. The wind gently battered the trees, producing a vaguely soothing roar. The dead leaves were swept away and scattered across the lawn, lost in the towering blades of grass as soon as they touched down. A stray dog on the street chased a leaf down the sidewalk in front of the mansion, pausing when it stood before the gates wrapped in yellow and black tape. Its ears pinned back and tail pressed between its legs. It ran, leaf forgotten, whimpering. 

The following day, the wind was the mansion’s only visitor. It whistled through the cracks in the walls and windows, skimming light fingers over every dust covered surface. It left just as quickly as it came, like even the wind itself didn’t want to linger in a house so rancid with death and evil. 

The next day was slate gray as far as the eye could see. All of New York was swathed in a dreary haze of cold and rain. Any unfortunate creature outside was wracked with chills as the air gnawed their skin. Somewhere in the mansion, the roof leaked in the same spot it leaked every time it rained in the last nine years. The steady  _ tap, tap, tap, _ was the only sound against the white noise of the rain.

Ash had always drawn some comfort from the rain. He could never place why, but something about the weather eased his nerves- and he had a lot of them. 

Every night was spent worrying about Eiji. With how harshly he was thrown against the wall, he probably broke quite a few bones. Maybe his spine or head was injured, and he was permanently disabled. The shreds of wood that shot into his skin could’ve hit a major vein, he could’ve lost a lot of blood. Not to mention the psychological effects of such an event must be terrible. Eiji was likely traumatized, and the guilt sat heavy and sour in Ash’s gut. 

Ash couldn’t have imagined that day going worse. The angry spirits had followed Eiji into Dino’s room with bloodlust written on their faces. They’d staggered at the sight of Ibe’s protective ring, trembling as their murderous intent was deprived of an outlet. They wasted no time sending a mirror into the foolish man who’d stepped outside the ring, invigorated by the presence of prey. All this time Ash hung back. His survival instincts told him to stay hidden until they left, but when the officer collapsed with shreds of flesh hanging off his face and blood gushing like a fountain, Ash grew cold. The hostile spirits weren’t going to leave. They would stay until they eliminated their target by any means, necessary or otherwise. 

Ghost heart rabitting in his chest, Ash forgot all about suppressing his energy and sprinted into the room as Eiji dove for the fallen officer. Delight struck the face of the tattooed guard, his lips curling up and cheeks crinkling like paper. Ash was too slow to stop him. With a simple twist of his head, he sent Eiji shooting across the room into the wall. He collided with a nauseating  _ crack!  _ and Ash was drenched in fear. 

The soldiers finally took notice of Ash as he rushed to Eiji’s side. The boy was struggling to pull himself up, flinching from bones undoubtedly broken.

“Eiji, are you okay?” He cried. 

The boy hardly managed to pull himself into a sitting position, cradling his wrist. “Ash?” His dark eyes were woozy and searching, budding with tears.

“Hold on, I’ve got you,” Ash tried to keep the fear out of his voice as he gently caressed Eiji’s forehead, brushing his bangs from his face, before he turned to face his enemies. 

They all wore the same wicked smiles, as though they shared a hive mind.

“Ash Lynx, it’s so good to see you again,” the tattooed spirit hissed. “Still protecting those weaker than you I see.”

Ash didn’t respond, rage boiling in his chest like magma. He remembered this man. He’d charged Sing with a knife while the Chinese boy was distracted. Ash shot him just in time to save Sing from a would be fatal knife wound. 

“Is this your new little pet?” the spirit cocked his head at Eiji. A notebook bulleted through the air at the motion towards the frail Japanese boy. Ash hurled it away with sheer force of will.

The stand off continued in a similar fashion, the spirits taunting and goading Ash while he silently fended off any action taken against himself or Eiji. Eventually they got so frustrated they let their energy consume the room, blowing up desks and mirrors like bombs. Eiji’s skin was shredded by the splinters of wood, and Ash could only yell for him to keep his head down. Ibe threw Eiji his clove and jade necklace. Then Eiji reached his hand out, arm ribbonned with streams of blood. “Ash, I see you…”

Everything afterwards was a blur. Ibe carrying Eiji back to safety. The hostile spirits continued to goad him, daring him to fight. Ash lost control and snarled hate back at them, rumbling with anger like a volcano about to erupt. 

And erupt he did. 

He let his anger unleash in a blinding flash of energy like lightning. For a second he was a being of pure electricity, then he was nothing. He came back to his senses that night, lying in the kitchen staring into pitch black darkness. It was like coming back from death all over again. The same spot in the same abandoned room.

Golzine’s men had been combing the halls for him in the past three days, not only angry that he’d stepped in and defended Eiji, but most of them wanted some kind of vengeance. Ash had been the one who killed most of them after all. He was forced to hide away in the attic, never allowing his presence to surface. The men had always patrolled downstairs, the attic was for servants to store things, they likely didn’t even know the place existed. Ash was completely by himself with a single window, where he could see the untamed lawn and empty streets, now soaked in rain. Everything seemed more harmonized in the rain, tied together by one coat of gray. 

Ash fiddled with a Rubik's cube for the third time that day. The attic was piled high with boxes stuffed with an array of strange items and knick-knacks he could occupy himself with. A crochet hook and yarn, dolls with matching houses, coloring books, even a lynx puzzle. 

None of them could replace the human company he yearned for. His hands ached for the warmth of life, to bask in Eiji’s light, his kindness, his smile. The angel boy had never been scared of Ash, of a dead, sullied, murderer. What had he said?

_ Maybe I actually enjoy talking to you and this isn’t out of pity. _

Sighing, Ash leaned back against the wall. He threw the now solved Rubik’s cube into one of the piles of boxes. It wobbled, and the top box fell, spilling a variety of colorful toys on the floor like confetti. He huffed drily, almost laughing, and turned to gaze out the window once more.

Three blots of color immediately caught his eye, just outside the property’s gate. He struggled upright and squinted through the distortion of the rain, straining to identify the objects.

Two police cars and a familiar white van. 

Ash’s breathing hitched. He thought once about how impossible it was that Eiji was there, that he’d  _ come back _ , before he was tearing through the attic. He scrambled down the stairs without a care as to what noise he made, traversing staircase after staircase in a frantic dash to the front door. His phantom heart thundered like a wardrum the whole time.

Forcefully braking himself by grabbing the wall, he skittered to a stop in front of the door. He pressed his face against the glass and searched with hope he knew better than to have. There’s no way Eiji would come back. He was traumatized and injured and needed to be resting right now. 

Yet a beautiful, shining figure exited the van. Even distorted from the rain, his glow was unmistakable.

Excitement and frustration was churning in Ash’s chest. Eiji surely must be stupid to come back here, yet Ash was thrilled to see the radiant boy. He couldn’t understand what he was supposed to do- he wanted to scold him and hug him at the same time. 

When Eiji and the others began approaching the mansion, Ash snapped out of his Eiji-induced haze, feeling a creeping tingle on the back of his neck. He whipped around with newfound energy, almost panicked. Golzine’s rancid men were peeking around corners, the hatred stewing in their hearts palpable. 

_ Eiji can’t get hurt again, _ Ash thought as he was swallowed by protectiveness.  _ I won’t let you hurt him again. _

During the standoff when Eiji was thrown into a wall, Ash had gotten rid of the hostile spirits by releasing a wave of rage powerful enough to force them away. He couldn’t do that now, he’d be completely out of energy and unable to talk to Eiji, but he could always try it again if things got dicey. Regardless, he wouldn’t let things go so far today. They wouldn’t get that close again if Ash could help it. 

The front door clicked. Ash took a few careful steps back and waited eagerly, his skin alive with desperate fire. 

Max Lobo’s disappointing face was the first one through the door. He surveyed the area cautiously before stepping in. Ibe followed with his thermal camera already equipped. Ash observed the old man swing it around, stopping when its lens landed on the blonde ghost. Ibe’s wide eyes lifted slowly to stare at Ash, his mouth slightly open. A brown bag hung from his neck on a cord like Eiji’s, only without the stone. 

Ibe stepped aside and allowed his assistant, the angel boy, to follow. 

Eiji was even more beautiful than Ash remembered. His dark hair was uncombed and black doe eyes shined with life, in sharp contrast to the bags beneath them. His left wrist was in a cast within a sling, and he hobbled on his right leg. Ash couldn’t see under the boy’s thick green rain jacket, but he could imagine the bandages all over the right side of his body. 

Unrelenting guilt and nausea hit him like a freight train. He recalled with a stone in his gut how terrified Eiji had been that day, woozy with shock, sunk down on the floor and helpless to the will of the dead. His watery black eyes, fazed by the pain, searching the empty room for any form of salvation.

Ash’s fingers curled into a fist. That would never happen again.

Other officers filed in behind Eiji, but Ash paid them no heed. He only watched Eiji, standing a couple of feet from him. His dark brows were furrowed, skin still bright with life. 

Ash’s guilt enveloped him. He couldn’t bring himself to take a step toward Eiji. He’d only bring more pain onto the innocent boy- pain he didn’t deserve. Ashamed of himself for wanting what he shouldn’t have, he turned to move away from the group. 

“I know you’re there, Ash,” Eiji’s voice came, gentle as always. 

Ash froze, hesitating.

“Eiji, what’d I say?” Ibe hissed, whirling to face his assistant. 

“Ash?” Eiji repeated, ignoring his mentor.  
The ghost in question turned to meet Eiji’s gaze. His shining black eyes were wide with an expression Ash couldn’t read. Something searching and desperate, sad yet hopeful. _Why is this boy such a mystery to me?_

Ibe snapped something in Japanese, his hand firm on Eiji’s good shoulder to pull him away. Eiji stood firm, his feet unbudging.

Ash bit down on his lip, considering for a moment more. 

“I’m here. I’ll follow,” he said, just loud enough that he knew Eiji would be able to hear him. 

Relief flooded Eiji’s face, and he allowed Ibe to guide him out of the foyer with Ash close at his side. So close that the blonde could see a stripe of a white bandage at the base of the boy’s neck.

“Are you okay?” Ash kept his voice as gentle as he could. The bandages seemed to hold his gaze like a magnet.

Eiji nodded, glancing warily at Ibe. He discreetly lifted his good hand and tickled the air next to him, searching. 

Ash laughed a little as warmth blossomed in his chest. He weaved their fingers together and his heart sighed in relief at the angel’s touch. Eiji grinned and scanned the space next to him. He swung his hand a little as they climbed upstairs.

_ What would the gang say if they saw this?  _ Ash thought, bittersweet. _ Big tough boss, holding hands with a pretty Japanese boy he met a week ago. They would’ve said I’ve gone crazy, or soft. _

When Ash turned to admire Eiji again, he noticed a familiar brown bag hanging off his neck. The stone was brilliant green- jade, he recalled Eiji saying. 

_ How fitting. _

“Man, I wish Ibe-san would allow me to talk to Ash right now,” Eiji declared abruptly. “I really want to thank him for everything he did for me a couple days ago.”

Ibe sourly glanced over his shoulder at his assistant. Eiji kept his eyes innocently averted towards the ceiling.

Ash snorted as the one-sided staring contest continued. Ibe relented with a heavy sigh.

“Why are you not allowed to talk to me?” Ash cocked his head, amused. 

“I would also tell him that I could only come back on the condition that I didn’t make contact with any spirits unless absolutely necessary, for some reason,” Eiji shrugged, then winced. He looked spitefully at his left shoulder.

“Eiji Okumura,” Ibe warned, spinning fully to face him. “I’m serious, I will make you sit in the van.”

“Geez, what is he, your dad?” Ash chuckled.

“Geez, what are you, my dad?” Eiji relayed, pouting. Ash choked on his own laughter when Ibe turned beet red. 

“Last warning,” Ibe lifted a parental finger. “You’re supposed to be at the apartment resting anyway, I will send you back.”

The officers all averted their gazes awkwardly away from the argument. 

“I’m sorry Ibe-san, I just don’t understand why I can’t talk to Ash,” Eiji’s voice and face grew serious. “He saved my life and has been nothing but kind to me. He’s important.”  
Ash’s throat constricted with emotion and his heart skipped a beat. When had he ever heard someone call him kind?

It felt blasphemous of him to look so fondly at Eiji. Demons weren’t meant to regard angels with such affection. 

“As far as I’m concerned, this house is filled with criminals and people who attacked you,” Ibe snapped. “We are here to keep these officers safe from them. Not make friends.”

“You’ve always said we do this job to help people,” Eiji’s grip on Ash’s hand tightened. “People like Ash.”

“Not at the expense of our own safety,” Ibe barked back. 

“I’m safe talking to Ash!” Eiji yelling was a strange sight. The strained creases and wrinkles on his face seemed unnatural on his soft features.

“You were talking to Ash when you were attacked the other day,” Ibe’s eyes narrowed.

“I wasn’t wearing this,” Eiji dropped Ash’s hand to lift his necklace. “I didn’t have enough protection.”

Ibe replied in Japanese, his voice laced with venom. Eiji recoiled at whatever he said and shouted back in Japanese. Ash tried to stay as close to him as possible, like his presence could keep the enraged boy anchored. 

Max Lobo quirked his eyebrows at his officers and they followed him into a side room- one of the many offices Dino once enjoyed, to avoid the spat. Ibe and Eiji continued yelling at each other in vehement Japanese. Ash could only recognize his name in their clash of angry words.

Ibe snarled something that made Eiji freeze, the color drained from his face. The simple sight of his distress was enough to put Ash on edge.

Eiji’s eyes grew glassy and his head sunk, gaze fixed to the floor. Ibe’s face drooped in shame, and he started towards his assistant with apology in his voice. But Eiji jerked away and mumbled darkly, ducking into himself like he was trying to disappear. Ibe cringed like he’d tasted something sour, but resigned to follow the officers into the side room they’d escaped into. 

“Are you okay?” Ash rubbed the back of Eiji’s hand. “What did he say?”  
“Nothing, I’m fine,” Eiji’s words were clipped and his posture low. Whatever Ibe had said was clearly upsetting enough to quiet the angel boy. Even his glow seemed to falter.

After the adults regrouped, they went to Dino’s primary study. Eiji trailed behind them, unnaturally quiet. Ibe threw concerned, sorry glances back at him several times, but Eiji’s eyes never left his own feet. 

Ibe was tying clove around the room and starting to burn incense while he talked seriously with the officers. Eiji leaned against the doorframe, chewing his lip. Ash felt awkward to be just standing there with him, not saying anything when he was clearly unhappy. But if he didn’t want to talk, Ash certainly wouldn’t make him.

“Ash?”

“Yes?” Ash responded quickly, almost desperate, to Eiji’s soft voice. 

“Do you have a place here? That you’d like to go and hang out?” Eiji lowered his voice even more, practically whispering.

Ash thought back to the isolated attic, piled high with boxes and a single window.

“The attic is alright,” he said slowly, suspicion mounting. “No other spirits go there. Why?”

Eiji didn’t answer, just quietly took a pad of paper off the nearby table and writing a quick note on it as softly as he could. 

“Let’s go there,” he whispered as he set the pencil down. He held his hand out behind him.

Ash couldn’t help but chuckle at Eiji’s sudden rebellion. He grabbed his hand without hesitation and tugged the angel boy out the doorway. They were only five feet away from the door when he began to giggle. 

“Ibe’s going to be so mad,” Eiji snickered. “Let’s go, let’s go!”

“Never took you for such a rebel!” Ash laughed as he tugged Eiji down the hallway. He couldn’t run with Eiji limping, but they hobbled along at a surprisingly fast rate, and Ash had to chortle at Eiji’s lopsided hopping. 

“You look like a little girl skipping,” Ash teased.

“You’re a bully,” Eiji stated simply, but his skin and smile glowed. “Wait Ash, I can see you!”  
“You can?” Ash halted, turning to meet Eiji’s gaze.

“Yeah!” but to Ash’s confusion, Eiji was looking straight past him. He dropped Ash’s hand and walked, again, straight past him, stopping in front of a long unused fireplace. He dropped down and took a handful of old ashes into his hand.

“Wow Ash, you’re so pretty.”  
“...Still better looking than you.”

Eiji giggled and threw the soot in Ash’s direction. “You’re just jealous of how funny I am.”

“Yeah, because you’re the first person to ever make that joke,” Ash rolled his eyes and made the soot swirl around Eiji’s face and dust his cheeks, careful to avoid his eyes and mouth. “There, now you’re all ashy too.”

“I think I can pull it off,” Eiji wiped the soot off with his sleeve. 

“You’re a mess.” Ash laughed and took Eiji’s hand again, leading him up the stairs at a gentler pace. Eiji smiled to himself, rouge coloring his cheeks. 

“Ash?” 

“Yeah?” 

“I- uh- thanks.” 

“For what? I haven’t even taken you there yet.” Ash smiled.

“...For being my friend.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> I also published a fluffy one shot yesterday in which Ash gets his wisdom teeth out, so if that interests you, check it out!


	9. The Attic

Holding hands with someone you can’t see is strange. The first time Ash had touched him, Eiji had been startled and shrunk away from its source. Now he was like a desperate child, his hands cold and empty when they weren’t guarded in Ash’s fingers. 

Surprisingly, holding hands you couldn’t see made you appreciate them even more. Eiji traced Ash’s every knuckle with gentle circles. He touched Ash’s nails, the dips in his palm where his muscles ended and began, the small rise of each vein, the subtle indications of scars and the less subtle callouses. Traces of a life lived on the hand of a ghost.

And he cherished those hands as they led him up to the top of the mansion.

The attic was packed with what Eiji could only describe as “stuff”. Boxes towered above him and a random assortment of items obscured most of the walls and floor from view. He could see old couches so faded he couldn’t tell what their original color was, paintings blurred by a layer of dust, broken tables and chairs jutting from the piles like broken bones from skin. The only source of light came from a small window at the far wall, allowing only a dim stream of gray light to illuminate the room. Eiji was vaguely reminded of the show he’d been watching yesterday to ease his boredom while he was recovering.  _ Hoarders _ , it was called.

“This place is kind of cool,” Eiji broke the silence, carefully stepping over a jewelry box that looked expensive. “Why is all this stuff up here?”  
“Storage,” Ash answered. His voice had grown to be less muffled. “At first maids just kept junk up here, then it gradually just became a spot everyone threw stuff they didn’t need. Do you see that suit over there?”

Eiji whirled around, struggling to locate the suit. “I can’t exactly see where you’re pointing.”

A rubber duck playfully bumped Eiji’s head, then turned its beak to his right. 

“Over there, silly,” Ash chuckled. 

“I’m not silly, you’re invisible,” Eiji grumbled, but he followed the duck’s beak. A dark suit with blue accents was encased in a dusty bag atop a pile of books. “Yeah, I see the suit.”

“It’s worth twenty-two thousand dollars,” Ash lowered his voice for the sake of drama.

Eiji couldn’t stop his jaw from dropping. “Twenty-two thousand?  _ Why _ ? What is it made of?”

“Not sure. Old man got it as a gift but it was too small, so it just ended up in here,” Ash’s cadence changed to something more playful. “Try it on.”  
“Really?” Eiji bounced on his heels as a wide grin busted out on his face. “Do you think that’s okay?”

“Old man’s not gonna be wearing it anymore,” Ash replied. Eiji could practically hear the shrug in his voice. “Go for it.”

Eiji hurriedly removed his raincoat and the sweater he wore over his button up. He pulled the suit from the bag, its fabric strong against his fingers and stiff from years untouched. It unfolded itself with a simple shake from Eiji, and a laugh suddenly burst from his mouth. 

“This is massive!” Eiji held it up, inspecting its full size with a delighted smile. “It was too small?”

“Dino was fat,” Ash said simply. “Hurry up and put it on. Maybe you’ll grow into it.”  
Eiji rolled his eyes and slung the suit over his back, sliding his good arm in. Half of it had to hang off his shoulder to accommodate the sling, but he put it on normally otherwise. The bottom flaps reached just past his knees, the armholes began at his elbow, and the sleeves ended almost six inches from his fingers. He felt like a toddler in adult clothes.

Ash’s laughter exploded in the silent air like a firework. He wheezed and gasped for breath, intermittently calming before shattering into hefty spells of laughter again. Eiji had never wanted to see Ash as badly as he did right now. He imagined tears leaking from his green eyes as he laughed and laughed, holding his sides and falling to the ground. 

It didn’t even matter that he was laughing at Eiji. If anything, that just made Eiji feel more like a cloud- above everything, light and fluttering. 

“You’re so-” Ash wheezed. “You’re so small oh my god-”

“I am not that small!” Eiji tried to sound angry, but he couldn’t fight the smile tugging his lips. “This suit is huge!”  
Ash only continued to laugh. “Can you- can you lift your arm up?”

Eiji somehow managed to make the action defiant, pouting as his right arm shot into the air. The sleeve folded at his fingertips, six inches of it hanging down like a wilted flower. The other half of the suit fell off his shoulder and hung on only through his arm. 

“Oh my god-” Ash gasped, howling with laughter. “I can’t breathe!”  
“Well duh, you’re dead!” Eiji retorted, shaking the suit off.

Ash managed to calm down once Eiji put the suit back in his bag and flung it as far as he could through the attic. It was forgotten the moment Eiji discovered a trash bag full of old VHS tapes. This sparked a frankly unfair competition to find the oldest thing in the attic. Eiji got cocky upon discovering a clucky rotary phone, but Ash won with an authentic 1920s phonograph. After Eiji overcame the bitter defeat, they managed to find a few decent records and had them playing in the background. The scratchy 60s jazz eventually melted into the sound of the rain, creating an ever greater song. Eiji cleared a spot on the floor, well away from all the cardboard boxes, and lit a few candles that he always carried in his bag.

Had Eiji not been so immersed in Ash’s recountings of his gang adventures, he might have realized the romantic atmosphere they’d accidentally created. Even if he had noticed, he wasn’t sure he would’ve cared. He’d never felt so at ease. 

Ash wrapped up his story as Eiji stood to flip over the record. For a moment, it was just the rain again. A moment gone too fast.

“Eiji, what did Ibe say to you earlier?”

Eiji stopped, the needle hovering above the spinning record. Somehow he’d managed to push the memory of his fight with Ibe to the side while he and Ash joked around in the isolated attic. Now it attacked his mind like crows to a carcass. 

“Nothing,” Eiji tried, hoping against reason that Ash would let it go. “Just brought up some stuff I didn’t want to hear.”  
“You seemed pretty upset back there.”  
Setting the needle on the record, Eiji scratched at the back of his neck in nervousness. “I mean, I was upset, but I’m fine now. Don’t worry about it.”

“I won’t make you talk about it, Eiji, I was just worried about you.” His deep breath could be heard. “You’re my friend after all.”

Eiji shifted his gaze, as if he could avoid making eye contact with Ash. It felt almost rude of him to make Ash worry, after all the boy had suffered through. He knew Ash’s baggage- why not share his own? Surely Ash wouldn’t think he was as pathetic as all his former friends did. He was better than that.

“Okay, um,” Eiji sat down in front of the candles. He could feel Ash in front of him, felt his patience. “He basically said that the whole reason he even brought me here is because I couldn’t handle my own failure. I was a pole vaulter back in Japan, and it was honestly my everything. And I was really good too. I was on track to vault professionally, maybe even in the Olympics. One day though, I miscalculated and overworked myself and ended up completely obliterating my ankle. I couldn’t vault for such a long time, and when I finally recovered, I couldn’t work up the nerve to do it. It was so pathetic. I kind of lost myself and didn’t take care of myself either. Ibe thought America might inspire me somehow, so he towed me along for his investigations here.”

Ash was silent. Silence is almost nauseatingly powerful when you can’t even see the other person. The only thing Eiji knew came from his empathic reach- Ash was contemplative. 

“Suffering from something terrible isn’t pathetic, Eiji,” Ash said finally. “And it’s not fair for Ibe to say something like that.”

“But he was right,” Eiji felt tears begin to bite at his eyes, but he swallowed them back. “That failure completely destroyed me and I couldn’t handle it.”

“Failure is part of growing,” As sounded almost wistful. “Some will hit harder than others. What’s important is that you get back up and learn from it. And that’s what you did just by coming here.”  
Eiji’s chest warmed and a tiny smile pressed into his face. “You sound like a motivational speaker.”

“Hey, I could be a motivational speaker if I wanted.” 

“I know you could.”

 

The ringing of Eiji’s phone startled him out of a sleep he didn’t realize he’d slipped into. He was slumped against a beanbag Ash had discovered, his right side aching with wisps of sleep. Bleary-eyed, he pushed his hair from his face and scoped the room for his phone while his joints popped. 

“How was your nap?” Ash’s voice was startlingly close, like he was leaning against Eiji’s ear. 

“When did I fall asleep?” Eiji replied, pulling his bag open to search for his phone. 

“Maybe like an hour ago?” 

“An  _ hour _ ?” Eiji shrieked. Ibe’s name flashed on his phone screen and he felt his chest constrict in fear as the air was sucked from his lungs. There was no doubt about it- Ibe was going to absolutely  _ kill him _ . 

Fingers trembling, Eiji accepted the call and held the phone to his ear. “H-hi Ibe-san…”

“Eiji,” Ibe’s voice was low and serious as death. “Where are you.”

“I’m uh- I’m in the uh- I’m in the attic?” 

“Are you alone?”

Eiji’s eyes slid to his right, where he could feel Ash’s presence. “Uh, Ash is with me.”

“I’m at the bottom of the stairs. Bring all your stuff down and meet me there.”

“Okay-”

Ibe hung up. 

Eiji sat in disbelief for a minute. Ibe had never sounded so angry before. He must be so disappointed and frustrated. Guilt clogged Eiji’s throat like bile.

“Everything alright?” Ash asked.

“Ibe’s furious,” Eiji answered. He blew out the candles in one shaky exhale. “I’ve gotta go see him.”

The record player stopped, leaving only the sound of rain and Eiji’s insecure breaths. 

“...Do you want help loading up?” Ash’s voice wavered. 

“Sure.”

So Eiji put his sweater back on and tied his rain jacket around his waist while Ash seemingly floated the candles, thermal camera, and the Ouija board planchette back into Eiji’s bag. The laughter that had saturated the room earlier was only a memory as they both feared the worst. Who was to say what Ibe would decide to do?  
“I’ll carry your bag for you,” Ash said. The bag floated around Eiji’s eye level a couple feet from him, where Ash’s invisible form held it, and he managed a smile at how silly it looked. 

“Thanks,” Eiji tried to think positively as they made their way down flights of stairs and through desolate hallways. He was desperately grasping at the hope that Ibe would need his empathic abilities to investigate, but deep down he knew Ibe would be able to get along just fine without him. The thought of not getting to spend time with Ash made his heart freeze and throat constrict. He’d gotten so used to the constant feeling of Ash’s presence in such a short amount of time, it felt unnatural and stifling to be without him. 

All the officers and Ibe stood at the bottom of the stairs, quietly talking to each other. Not a single one of them was smiling. It was like they were discussing a funeral. 

Eiji took one look at them from around the corner and his mouth went dry as sandpaper. They were all there, this was really about to happen, this might be it. Today really might be the last day he got to be with Ash.

“I’m scared,” Eiji’s voice was barely above his breath. “I want to come back.”

“Don’t worry,” Ash’s fingers slid between Eiji’s. “We’ll work something out. Let’s get this over with.”

The feeling of Ash next to him was the push of bravery Eiji needed to get out from behind the corner and make his way down to meet Ibe. His heart pounded in his ears like a war drum, and Ibe’s gaze hit him like a bullet, making him halt halfway down the stairs.

“Are you out of your mind?” Ibe practically snarled, his face turning purple. His shoulders were shoved back and his eyes were lit with anger. Eiji unwillingly flinched and tightened his grip on Ash’s hand. 

“Ibe-san, please, I was being safe-”

“Tell your ghost friend to get out of here,” Ibe barked. “I can see him holding your bag. You and I need to have a conversation.”

Even though panic roared in his chest like a caged animal at the suggestion of being separated from Ash, Eiji knew better than to fight his mentor right now.

“Here, I’ll handle this, you don’t have to stick around,” Eiji said quietly as he took his bag from Ash’s shoulder. 

“Good luck Eiji,” Ash’s voice was softer than Eiji had ever heard it. With one final fond smile in the ghost’s direction, Eiji climbed down the last of the stairs.

“What were you thinking?” Ibe snapped. He was yelling without even realizing it, too livid to care. “You ran off, alone, into a mansion we know is filled with spirits intent on killing you? Did you think that was smart? And what about what we discussed at the hotel? About not talking to spirits? Do you have any idea how worried I was?”  
Eiji shrunk into himself at the onslaught of rage. He couldn’t even find it within himself to realize that Ibe was only angry out of love. All he felt was shame and injustice. 

“I shouldn’t have run off, and I’m sorry,” Eiji cringed at the warble in his own voice. “I just like being with Ash, and you said I couldn’t for no reason-”

“No reason?” Ibe repeated, incredulous. “How about the fact that the last time you were together, you ended up going to the ER with a dislocated shoulder and sprained wrist? You are not safe here, no matter whose company you’re in!”

“You’re just as unsafe as me!” Eiji retorted, strangely angry at the notion of Ash being dangerous. “The only reason I got hurt was because I went to help Officer Beauregard, I was just as safe as you otherwise! Plus the only reason you knew what was coming was me and Ash! We felt hostile spirits! It could’ve been a lot worse if not for me and him!”  
“That doesn’t change the fact that you refuse to listen to me, and I am responsible for your safety!” Ibe swiped his hands outwards in anger. “Your parents trusted me to take care of you, and your safety comes before any part of the investigation.”  
Eiji felt unfamiliar rage spike in his chest like a hot iron. “I am an adult, I don’t need anyone to be _responsible_ for me. I can take care of myself!” 

“Then why are you in a cast and sling?” Ibe’s words came like harsh dog bites to Eiji’s heart. “Why are you covered in bandages? Until you can show me that you can actually take care of yourself, you won’t be coming back!”  
Eiji’s breath snagged. “...What?”  
Ibe lifted his chin. “Tell Ash goodbye. You’re leaving.”

“Ibe-san, that’s ridiculous!” Eiji cried. The cavernous walls of the mansion seemed too small, suddenly closing in on him. 

“Don’t tell me what’s ridiculous!” Ibe growled. “Let’s go.”  
“No, no, why won’t you listen to me?” Eiji was on the edge of hysteria, his eyes swelled and body shaking like a leaf. “I thought you trusted me!”

“And I thought you respected me,” Ibe replied bitterly. “Keep fighting me on this and I’ll put you on the next plane to Japan.”

Eiji wanted to scream and cry and disappear all at the same time. He’d never felt so utterly powerless. It was unfair. It was  _ so _ unfair. 

Ibe turned on his heel and marched to the front door, not even looking back to check if Eiji was following. He twisted the door handle.

It didn’t budge.

“Max,” Ibe looked over his shoulder. “Did you lock the door?”

“No,” Max Lobo’s eyebrows knitted. “It should be open.” He approached the door and pull a ring of keys from his pocket. He slid one in and twisted, then tried the door again. It stood firm. “It should be open. What’s going on?”

“No one else has a key,”  Officer Connelly stepped forward. “It can’t be  _ locked _ .”

“Well it’s not opening,” Max tugged the handle aggressively again. The officers began to gather, leaning in to inspect the stubborn door. No matter how they tried, it refused to open. 

Eiji was grateful for the delay for a fleeting moment. 

Panic gripped him with icy talons. 

Bloodlust stunk up the air. 

And every curtain in the mansion snapped shut at the moment every light flickered out, plunging them all into darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, it was fun while it lasted, but I'm afraid weekly updates are going to be hard to come by. I've got summer work to do and school starts in like three weeks (end me) so I will have less and less time to write. I will update as often as I can though!  
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	10. The Dark

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god it's been such a long time I am so sorry- I hope you like the chapter!

Ash didn’t even realize Golzine’s men were there. One moment he was sitting on the stairs, knees pulled close to his chest while he watched Eiji and Ibe fight. The next he shocked upright, as though electrocuted, his heart thundering rapidly.  A pulse of hateful energy bowled him over, sprawling off the stairs in what would have been a painful tumble had he been physical. He lifted his head to find the entire mansion shrouded in darkness black as coal. He only knew Eiji hadn’t vanished off the face of the earth because of the golden-white glow shimmering around the boy. His aura seemed even brighter in the darkness, the stark contrast holding Ash’s gaze like a lifeline.

“What happened?” One of the female officers gasped. 

“I don’t know. Ibe, is this supernatural?” Max Lobo asked. Ash could make out his form if he squinted. He was slowly inching backwards, towards the center of the foyer. 

“I-I think,” Ibe responded. “Ei-chan?”  
Eiji whipped around, like he was trying to see every corner of the mansion at once. Flesh pulled taunt over his face, terror written on his brows in uncomely creases. His breathing came in uneven, ugly heaves. 

Ash pulled himself up, a tug in his gut commanding him to comfort his angel boy. However, as soon as he took a step forward, he was plunging through the floor. He only had time to scream as he zipped from the ground floor, the basement, Dino’s secret lab, and crashed into rotting wood enveloped with darkness so strong he could taste it. 

_ What just happened? _ Ash squinted into the surrounding blackness as adrenaline from the sudden fall beat through him.  _ Where am I? I didn’t know there was a floor beneath the dungeon and lab. And why did I suddenly fall? _

Sliding his hands across the soft, uneven wood of the floor, Ash searched for any kind of hint as to where he was and how to get out. He hurried and would occasionally drop down a hole in the flooring to find clay squelching between his fingers. The air was thick with a sulphurous, earthy musk. 

_ I need to get out of here _ , he thought as his scanning grew more frantic.  _ Eiji’s still up there, he could be in danger.  _

The touch of smooth plastic startled him- he almost missed it in his desperate searching. Invigorated by the discovery of something, Ash ran his hands upwards to find the plastic arcing in a cylindrical shape. 

_ Pipes _ , Ash realized.  _ They’re pipes. Maybe they’ll lead me back up if I follow them. I have no other viable options.  _

Stumbling in the disorienting darkness, Ash crawled through a hallway that seemed to never end. The pipes were shrouded in patches of moss and mold, an unwelcome texture on his fingers. Every step brought his heart to pump louder, faster, like it was going to  burst if he didn’t make it out of this blackness right now.

Finally, after what could’ve been minutes or hours, the pipes curved upwards and Ash felt a wall of mushy wooden planks. Whatever this place was, he’d reached the end of it. If he stood as tall as he could, he could feel an equally soft wooden ceiling. Fingers crawling and dancing like spiders across the walls and ceiling, he desperately searched for any measure of escape. A hatch, a door, a ladder, something. His efforts however, were fruitless. He only earned a thick layer of grime beneath his ghostly nails. 

Groaning like a wounded animal, Ash clenched his teeth and rolled his head back while his chest tightened. How could he get out of here? He couldn’t float- he’d tried for years but was never able to complete the task. Trials always ended in him almost getting caught by Golzine’s cronies as he exerted so much energy. The best he could do was get out of here physically. 

_ I can try to remedy the darkness at least _ . Ash sucked in the foul air of the dank underground as he lifted a hand toward the direction he’d came, the other hand still lingering on the pipes. Light gradually began to drift from his palm, faint and unsure, but present nonetheless. He could already feel his energy dripping away from him, but his priority was to escape. He had to get out of there. He had to get back to Eiji. 

Now that he had light, Ash could see just how long and narrow the hall was. The walls, pipes, floor and ceiling were all in the same state of decay. No one had been down here in years, that much was obvious. 

Ash took uneasy steps forward, growing weaker with each footfall and the light flickering. The hall just didn’t seem to end. He passed a few water heaters and heavy machinery along the way, but besides those, the place was unchanging. He could’ve been walking a circle for all he knew. 

His energy was so depleted and glow so tiny, that if his eyes hadn’t been so trained, he would’ve missed it. He would have continued trudging right past that rusty metal ladder on the wall. 

Suddenly energized, Ash grabbed at the rungs and pulled himself to the top of the ladder. Slotted in the ceiling like a promise from heaven was a metal hatch, rusted beyond belief and padlocked. Ash blew the padlock off without a second thought, uncaring to how his muscles burned with fatigue. He slammed his shoulder against the hatch. It gave about an inch before he found it too heavy.

_ Come on, _ Ash bit his lip with pressure that would’ve split living skin.  _ I didn’t come this far to be bested by a trapdoor.  _

Well aware of the fact that he could be condemning himself, Ash gathered his energy in his shoulder, the light leaving. He had to remember where the door was. Buzzing with all the electricity he summoned, Ash leaned back before ramming his shoulder full force into the hatch.

_ WHAM! _

The door jolted upwards, nearly flipped as it should be. Ash grunted and heaved, straining to keep the hatch moving. It’s weight nearly matched his strength, fighting him on every centimeter he pushed. 

_ One more big shove _ , Ash panted, his hands joining his shoulder on the door and neck twisted.  _ Just one more. _

Shaking, Ash threw everything he had at the hatch. Finally, it fell back, leaving an opening for Ash to crawl through. 

He couldn’t though. His whole body was so sapped of energy he fell right off the ladder and landed on his back, wheezing in the humid air. Ribbons of green and purple danced in the darkness before his eyes while his temperature climbed. The black surrounding him spun and spun until he didn’t know which way was up, down, if he was upright or sitting. He was like a planet in space, spinning in darkness broken only by stars. Time was water, slipping through his fingers.

Ash had no idea how long he’d laid there, dizzy and drunk with exhaustion. When he finally came to his senses, he forced himself up. God only knows how long he’d been out like that. He climbed the ladder and hoisted himself out of the hatch. It was still dark, though there were faint glows from some of the machines against the walls. He was in Dino’s secret lab, below the basement. At least he was somewhere he recognized now. 

The tiled floor was jagged around the hatch he’d lifted. Upon squinting at the powdery edges, he realized the flooring had been laid over the hatch, that he’d broken the floor trying to open it. No wonder it was so difficult.   
Now that he was out of the unfamiliar underground he’d been trapped in, Ash could confidently navigate. His being still dragged with exhaustion, nearly all his energy spent. He powered through the memories assaulting him at the sight of the lab, the dungeon. The air smelled of old blood and evil. Words cannot express how thankful he was to get out of there. The next floor to clear was Dino’s public basement, where he’d entertain politicians and sponsors oblivious to his secret dealings. Ash had never liked it down here either. Sometimes he’d been required to dote on the disgusting old men Dino wanted a favor from down here. 

_ Power through. Just keep powering through. _

Finally, Ash emerged onto the ground floor. The entire mansion was no lighter than the dungeon, but it was no issue. Ash knew the floorplan of the mansion like he knew his own name. He made it to the foyer in no time. 

To find it empty. 

All the agents- and more importantly, Eiji- were gone. Ash couldn’t even feel the presence of Golzine’s men. It was as though they’d all evaporated on the spot. The only thing close to a hint he could find was a splatter of blood on the front door, still sticky, not yet dry.

Ash became a statue at the sight of it, the shock a hungry, gnarled creature eating his heart and choking him. Surely that wasn’t Eiji’s. Eiji had his protective necklace on, he had to be okay. He had to.  _ He had to- _

_ BANG! _

The sound jerked Ash’s gaze away from the splatter. It didn’t sound too far off, possibly near the kitchen. He wrung his hands. It was possible that was Eiji, but if not, he’d be wasting time that could be spent searching

Ash swallowed his doubts with his bile and dashed as fast as his fatigued form would allow toward the kitchen. The whisper of unease he began to feel grew as he ran closer, soon growing to shake his whole body.

_ Please be okay, Eiji. Please please please. _

The door to the kitchen was ajar, and Ash easily swung inside to find pots and cutlery littering the floor. A cone of light shone on the floor behind the center island, glinting off a discarded knife. Ash lifted his gaze to find one of Golzine’s men standing behind the island as well, his eyes down and lips up. 

Without warning, the man’s head swung around to look at Ash, and his smile twisted further.  He wore dark sunglasses, one lens shattered to reveal sadistic eyes. 

“Ah, so you’re back,” he hissed, drawing his shoulders back and puffing his chest. 

“Where are all the people? What did you do to them?” Ash snapped back. He took a couple steps towards the guard. He was able to look over the island now, and saw none other than Max Lobo panting on the floor, flashlight thrown to his left. The side of his head was dark and matted.

“We’re doing our job,” the guard sneered. “That means getting rid of anyone seeking to uncover anything else about Papa.”

“What did you do?” Ash repeated, trying to make himself appear stronger than he felt. He didn’t have near enough strength to fight off another spirit. He could barely summon the strength to walk. 

“We’re taking care of it,” the man drawled. “We’ll deal with you too.”

Ash’s veins sang. They were going to kill these people. They were going to kill Eiji. He had to find Eiji. Surely Max would be able to help. He needed Max, and he needed this spirit gone. 

Though he lacked the energy to fight, he still had the strength to suppress himself, disappearing from the guard’s view. The guard’s visible eye widened, his head whipping around to relocate Ash.

“Stop hiding!” He barked. “I’ll kill the human! I’ll kill him!” 

Ash’s nails dug into his palm. What could he do… what could he do… 

Wait.

The mansion was seized for investigation. It wasn’t cleared of anything, including anything in the kitchen that wasn’t a health risk for investigators. He knew. There would be herbs in the kitchen, herbs that could possibly keep an evil spirit at bay.

_ Clove, Eiji has clove, that’s used as a spice, _ Ash hurried to the cabinet, flinging it open without a care and rifling through the shelves. _ If I can just find some clove. _

“What are you doing?” The man roared. He stomped across the room, crackling with furious energy. 

Ash heaved frantically, knocking down all the bottles of spices as he squinted at label after label.

The man in shades suddenly burst into the cabinet, face curling in rage. He sprung forward and tackled Ash to the ground, despite the fact that he wasn’t visible.

Choking suddenly, Ash flailed for the rows of spices before he was slammed into the floor. No- his head was halfway through the ground- he was sinking again.

“You- nuisance-!” The man gurgled, frothing at the mouth while his hands fumbled to find hold on Ash’s throat. He pushed and pushed, shoving Ash further and further through the floor and draining his energy. He was rabid, he was a wild dog. Ash yelled and fought, kicking however he could and clawing for any kind of hold to avoid being sent down again- or worse, reduced to nothing. But his shoulders sank, then his neck, until only his face remained. He screamed terribly, a raw, ripping sound. 

The hands suddenly vanished from Ash’s throat and he rolled away, onto solid ground he was no longer sinking into. He gasped and wheezed, his throat struggling to open and take in any air at all. Blood pounding in his ears, Ash lifted his eyes. 

Max Lobo stood above him, clutching a small bottle full of what looked like elongated dried raisins. Golzine’s man was nowhere to be seen. 

“Okay,” Max’s shoulders rose and fell rapidly. “Okay, okay.” He turned slowly, looking to the floor where Ash still lay. “Huh. If Ash Lynx is here, give me a sign?”

Ash, still catching his breath, slammed his fist into the nearby shelf, sending a couple boxes of teabags to the floor. 

“Oh. Okay. I think you just helped me, so thank you,” Max still clutched the bottle of clove in a white knuckled fist. 

Ash pulled himself to his feet. He had to ask where Eiji was, but Max couldn’t hear his voice and he had nothing to write with. 

“Is there a way you want to communicate?” Max asked, inching out of the cabinet to grab his flashlight. He turned it to Ash, making him flinch away.

An idea sparked in Ash’s brain. He flickered the flashlight off an on, saying “This” in morse code. Surely a police officer would know morse code. 

“Okay, morse code, that works,” Max said thankfully. “Can you tell me what’s going on? Why the doors are locked, lights are out, and signal is completely dead?”

“Where is Eiji,” Ash responded via flashlight.

Max looked uncertain. “I don’t know. When the lights suddenly went out, people just began vanishing one after another. I was there one second and here the next. Shunichi and Eiji were the last ones, I don’t know where they are.”

Ash found himself itching for a gun, strangely enough. Feeling so ignorant and helpless while Eiji was likely in danger made him crave something to control, a weapon, some form of power.

“Find Eiji,” Ash flickered. 

“We’ll look for everyone,” Max replied, his jaw set. “Can you work with me?”

Ash didn’t have a good experience with cops. Or older men. Especially older men he didn’t know. But Max had been genuine and levelheaded the whole time, not to mention he’d help find Eiji. They’d help each other. 

Ash blinked the light. “Yes.”


	11. The Officer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey ya'll!  
> I feel awful about this chapter taking so long to come out, so I doodled something up as well as an apology.  
> If this chapter has to update a bajillion times, it's because I'm trying to figure out how to put an image in the text!!!  
> I hope you enjoy...

    This would be the migraine to end all migraines. 

    Eiji’s head was alight and pulsing with pain he could only describe as a burning red. 

    His heart still hadn’t calmed even slightly since he’d first felt the presence of primal hostility tickle his neck. Then the familiar comfort of Ash’s presence vanished. The officers had all looked between each other, exclaiming variations of “What was that?” and “What’s going on?”. Max shouted for everyone to calm down and grab on to each other as their vision was useless in so much darkness. He’d taken a head count, calling out names. 

    “Connelly?” 

    “Here!” A voice by Eiji’s ear exclaimed. The hand he held trembled.

    “Eiji?”

    “Here,” Eiji’s voice sounded weak, even to his own ears.

    “Amy?”

    No one responded. 

    “Is Amy here? Does anyone have her?”

    Eiji had extended his free hand out to feel around for any sign of the vanished woman. Absolutely nothing. 

    “Where could she have gone?” 

    The hair on the back of Eiji’s neck rose as he felt a flutter of cold breath from behind him. He pressed his lips tight to suppress the whimpers threatening to spill over and betray his terror. The hand of whoever he’d grabbed shook and grew clammy with sweat. 

    “Connelly, get your flashlight out,” Max ordered. Eiji could feel his fear, despite his voice being stern and free of tremors. 

    “On it,” a voice to Eiji’s left said. There was the sound of rustling fabric and zippers. A click, and a beam of light that might as well have been acid for how badly it stung Eiji’s eyes. He flinched away, squeezing his eyes shut.

         A clatter.

Eiji’s hand was suddenly cold and empty.

    When he peeked toward the source of the noise, Connelly’s flashlight rolled on the floor, flickering on and off like a strobe light. Ominous and winking like the eye of a monster, it seemed to look at Eiji. Angry. 

    “What the hell is happening?” Jacob cried, high and reedy. As the light continued to flicker, Eiji could only catch glimpses of the man’s face, gnarled with stress lines. Max moved to grab his officer, but after another flicker of dark to light, the space Jacob once occupied stood obnoxiously empty. 

    “Eiji, Max, stay with me,” Ibe instructed. Eiji could see flashes of his mentor’s form as he rummaged through his bag and the flashlight continued it’s epilectic flickering. 

    “Where are they? I’m not going anywhere without my officers,” Max asked, inching toward Ibe regardless.

    “I don’t know!” Ibe near shrieked. The light reflected off his eyes, flaunting the unnatural size they’d swelled to out of pure terror. “This has never h-happened before!” 

    Ibe managed to yank some clove and the thermal camera from his bag. He held both clove and the camera to his chest while he practically rattled with shakes. He held the camera at the level of his eyes, seemingly frozen. A second passed.

    “MAX!” Ibe screamed, suddenly leaping forward just in time for Max to evaporate in a puff of frosted air. The camera clattered to the floor where the man once stood.

    “Ibe-san, Ibe-san what do we do?” Eiji stumbled, dizzy from the flashing light and stress. He wasn’t even sure what language he was speaking.

    “Run!” Ibe spun on his heel and sprinted from the foyer. “Come on! We need to go!”

    Eiji wheezed as he ran to the best of his very limited abilities. At some point his bag slipped off his shoulder, and he crashed into tables and chairs alike in a mad rush to keep Ibe in sight. His feet pounded the floor so intensely that the impact reverberated up his legs. 

    Ibe ducked quickly into a side room, glancing over to make sure Eiji was following. He felt the slightest flutter of hope that he and his mentor could safely hide together until they devised a plan to escape and help the others as he put all his faith in the gleam in Ibe’s eyes-

    The door to the room slammed shut on Ibe’s face. An adjacent bookshelf crashed in front of it, wood cracking and books spilling out like guts from a carcass and separating the two.

    “IBE-SAN!!!” Eiji wailed. He tore his arm out from the sling, gritting his teeth against the ripping pain that surged like a tidal wave in his shoulder. Hands still sweaty and trembling, he yanked on the edge of the bookcase with both hands, fighting harder than he could ever remember fighting.  Even as he threw his entire body weight back, straining every muscle he had, it didn’t give even an inch.

    Exhausted, Eiji flopped against the wood floor, instantly hissing at how it made the pain in his shoulder flare. Cursing his situation, cursing the guards, cursing his own inability to react to danger when he felt it. Ibe wasn’t responding to him, he re-injured his shoulder, he had lost his bag, Ash was nowhere to be found. This could only be worse if he lost his jade and clove. 

    He fumbled around his neck at the thought, breath suddenly stuck in his throat like a foot in quicksand. Thankfully, the cool jade and rough bag met his fingers and he heaved a sigh of relief. 

    Groaning, he pushed himself up, careful of his left shoulder. It felt as if a dog with hot, blunt teeth was gnawing through his muscles down to the bone, almost worse than when he’d initially dislocated it. A hot wire strung beneath his skin, weaving through his muscles and bones, running from his shoulder to wrist. He felt as though he had taken for granted every moment when his body wasn’t aching.

There was no chance of him getting to Ibe with the door blocked and his left arm useless. The next best option was to hide out until something, _anything,_ changed. Huddle in a dark corner and wait. No motivation to solve anything for himself. 

_Come on Eiji,_ he squeezed his right hand into a fist. _Take initiative for once in your life. Ash would. He’d figure something out_

Getting to his feet as unsurely as a newborn fawn, Eiji staggered in darkness so thick he could’ve been walking through a storm cloud. Every shifting shadow and creak of the floorboards made him jump out of his skin. His steps were unsure, like the floor would give out beneath him if he applied too much pressure.

Something brushed against his ankle. Eiji whirled around in response, his mind absorbed in the haze of _fight or flight, fight or flight, fight or flight_. In his panicked flurry, his knee collided with a low stool and he hissed in pain, stumbling back and crashing through something shrill and breakable. He fell wedged between two surfaces he couldn’t see, skin ripe with pain. A single swipe down his arm revealed that he was, in fact, absolutely shredded by glass he’d apparently broken through. Sharp corners dug into his body, driving deep against his bones and poking through his ribs.

It would be fantastic if he could go five minutes in this damn house without causing himself bodily harm.

_BANG!_

Eiji forced himself as upright as he could be against the toppled furniture keeping him pressed to the floor. His heart began to beat at the tempo of a dragonfly’s wings and a sharp ringing filled his ears. Was someone hurt? Where did that come from?

Voices in another room were heard, like dogs barking in the distance. He could not place them, be it from blood loss or whatever bizarre mental state his brain had entered for self preservation. They sounded human though.

Eiji ran his hands along the wood of the structure pinning him to the ground. He guessed it to be some kind of china cabinet or armoire from the designs he could feel on the corners and the shards of glass. Tucking his injured arm against his chest, Eiji pressed his palm against the flat top of the structure. Teeth gritted and cold sweat trickling down his brow, he pushed with all his might, hips lifting as well. The cabinet rose slightly with this force, his feet free at least. His back arched and shoulders dug into the floor as his hips and chest did most of the lifting. Quaking with effort, he floundered beneath the cabinet’s weight like a bird with a wing stuck under a rock. With one final heave and heavy breath, Eiji sprung out from under the crushing weight and crashed to the floor beside it. 

His vision spun in different shades of green while he lay, panting, on jagged leaves of glass. Something wet and thick rattled in his chest as he heaved in despair or relief, crawling up his throat and forcing its way out as a mighty sob, tears springing loose as his floodgates opened. He bit his lip aggressively to hold back the cries threatening to give away his location to enemies. Blood leaked into his mouth and soaked his tongue. 

_This was supposed to be me moving on,_ Eiji thought as his bad ankle throbbed. _This was going to be me succeeding and growing and finally becoming something worth anybody’s time. Why…_

Eiji covered his mouth with his good hand, stifling.

_Why am I always so pathetic?_

Ibe was the only thing that pulled Eiji out of living a monochrome life after his pole vaulting failure. Dragging him to investigations to try and make him feel some kind of passion for something again. Strangely enough, being with the dead brought life back to him. Ghosts became colors in his blanched world and he fostered a steadily growing love for helping the innocent ones move on and protect helpless people from evil spirits.

But just as with pole vaulting, the love he raised meant nothing. This passion would crash and burn as its predecessor did.

This time though, his failure actually would be the death of him.

Eiji’s heart crumpled like paper in his chest as all the stress and disappointment of the past days, weeks, years drowned him. He turned on his side, rubbing his jade stone between his fingers as he curled in on himself and the world got bright-

“Eiji?”

Before he could even lift his head to see who had approached him, Eiji was roughly jostled into a far too tight fireman’s carry against a masculine chest. The man held a flashlight between his teeth with a glare so strong Eiji couldn’t see past it, couldn’t see his face. The man’s shirt was damp and something dripped on Eiji’s face from above. He squeezed his eyes shut as the man ran through the halls feverishly, like the devil was on his heels. 

Eiji must have fallen unconscious at some point, because when he opened his eyes the man was no longer running, just standing with his chest convulsing and head snapping back and forth. He jogged one direction, into a room, and slammed the door shut with his foot. For three hour-long seconds, he remained watching the door with Eiji in a vice grip. He finally allowed himself an exhale and set Eiji down on the ground, and the Japanese boy could finally get a look at his face.

“Officer Connelly! Thanks for helping me, are you alright?” Eiji asked when he recognized the man’s dark goatee and sharp eyes. 

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” Connelly made no move to relax his body in the slightest. His eyes were locked on Eiji, rigid and unblinking. Drool dripped from his mouth, and the flashlight was shiny with saliva coating. Eiji shivered, thinking the man’s spit had been what dripped on his face.

“Do you know where anyone else is?” Eiji scooted back and sat up, leaning back ever so slightly.

“I think I heard Amy upstairs.” Connelly answered, his words leaving his mouth faintly, like he didn’t have enough breath to carry them. “Where’s your bag?”

“I lost it in the chaos earlier,” the longer Connelly’s eyes burned into Eiji, the less safe he felt. 

“Huh.” 

In the silent moments that followed Connelly’s brief acknowledgement, Eiji noticed that the left side of Connelly’s head was dark and the hair matted. Blood stained his collar and… and he was missing his left ear. A grisly red hole was the only indication that he’d ever had one. 

Eiji swallowed deeply while his stomach churned at the sight. “Officer Connelly, what happened?”

Connelly licked his lips. “You have no idea where your bag is?”

“No,” Eiji repeated. He slowly rose to his feet as his every instinct screamed _danger_. 

Connelly looked down, his eyebrows knitting together and lips twisting. His eyes were dark, unreadable.

“Officer Connelly, please, talk to me,” Eiji pleaded, backing up and raising his hands.

Connelly remained in front of the door a few seconds longer, lips pursed and conflict festering in his eyes. He finally lifted his head to meet Eiji’s gaze.

“Eiji, I’m sorry,” Connelly’s voice wavered, somewhere between resolved and sad. “I have kids, and they’re not going to grow up without a dad.”  
“What? Officer, what are you-”

Eiji was cut off when Connelly suddenly lunged and tackled him to the ground. Eiji choked on his words and immediately began kicking at Connelly, who immediately responded by placing his weight entirely on Eiji’s legs. Eiji screamed and thrashed to try and throw off the officer, but Connelly was absolutely set on his mission. His hands searched Eiji’s body frantically, sending a cold shock of violation up his spine and spurring him even further to fight Connelly off. 

The bloody, rough hands found Eiji’s neck despite his best efforts to escape the officer. Fingers crawled up and down his throat like spider legs, fumbling and carelessly squeezing. Connelly leaned forward for a different angle, his knee effectively nailing Eiji’s stomach. Eiji choked and coughed as nausea possessed him, but thanks to Connelly’s abuse of Eijis’ neck, only a spittle of sour vomit escaped Eiji’s mouth while the rest clogged his insides.

Connelly found the string of Eiji’s necklace and wrenched it off, throwing it around his own neck and tucking the bag of clove and jade beneath his shirt. 

“I will not die here,” he hissed, clambering to his feet and snatching his flashlight off the floor. “I’m sorry.”

Eiji only managed to roll to his side, wheezing, before Connelly ran out, slamming the door behind him and leaving Eiji defenseless.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I am endlessly sorry for how long it took me to put this chapter out!!! School hates me  
> Don't worry, next chapter will be up before 2020, I won't leave you on that cliff forever.  
> Thanks for reading!


	12. The Jade

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not edited so I could get it out on time...so...

“This is Chief Lobo, NYPD. Requesting back up to the Golzine Mansion, 1531 Oathkeeper Drive. Over,” Max said into his walkie talkie again. Ash rolled his eyes and squinted further into the shadowy mansion. The policeman had been relentlessly calling the station and dialing every number on his strange screen device, apparently the new model of telephone. No one answered every time, and Ash thought it the most blatant waste of time possible. He paid it no mind however- he could only think about Eiji. 

Max grew red in the face as only radio silence responded to his call for the upteenth time. He sighed deeply and pressed the button again. “This is Chief Lo-”

Ash snatched the walkie talkie from his hands and threw it as far as he could, his frustration erupting.

Max pursed his lips and watched as the walkie talkie clattered in the darkness. “You truly are a delight, Ash Lynx.”

Ash toggled the flashlight. “Not working. Find Eiji.” 

“That’s what we’re doing,” Max continued shining his flashlight into every corner he could. “This is a huge place. Is there any kind of spiritual magic stuff you could do to speed the process along? Or why this is happening now?”

Ash bristled. “No.”

Eiji’s glow was nowhere to be found, and he couldn’t even catch a hint of the warming, inviting aura that he emitted. It was as though he had vanished off the face of the earth for all Ash could tell. 

However, he could sense the position of any and every former soldier in the mansion. Before, they simply let their presence be known instead of suppressing it like Ash did. Now, they suffocated the air with their energy, making sure anything with a soul knew they were there and they were not happy. 

“What do you think happened here?” Max wondered, aiming his flashlight towards the wall. A bookshelf lay on its side in front of the door to Dino’s secondary wine cellar with all the books scattered in front of it. The air was tingling with negative energy and ill intentions, but Ash could sense more than the intentions left by the offending spirit. Something in direct contrast, with the same allure as the clove in Max’s hand. The offer of protection. 

Ash stepped forward, through the bookshelf and wall, just enough to see a huddled figure prostrated beneath rows and rows of wine bottles.

“Person. Get in.” Ash toggled quickly before he kicked all the books aside. It took both him and Max putting their backs into it to move the shelf away just enough to squeeze past it and open the door. 

“Ibe!” Max exclaimed. He dashed to the Japanese man, crouching by him and quickly patting him down for injuries. Ibe was covered in clove, agrimony, and tightly clutching a stick of burning incense. Ash looked at him and saw a god-fearing man, scared and praying for his life so intensely he’d effectively drowned out all other things. It took Max shaking him for his eyes to open and another couple of seconds for him to react at all.

“Max...Max! Thank god you’re okay!” Ibe cried, putting out his incense and grabbing Max by his shoulders. His eyes resembled goose eggs, his voice jarring like a fire alarm.  “I was separated from Eiji, I don’t know where he is!”  
Ash came to attention at the mention of Eiji’s name. He registered quickly that Ibe had been locked in this room while Eiji was outside. Despite Eiji being alone, Ash took comfort in the knowledge that he had the clove and jade if nothing else. Nevertheless, he felt like he was standing on the edge of a cliff in the uncertainty, the adrenaline gearing him up to run and jump at the first sign of trouble. 

“Ash and I are looking for him right now, we’re going to get everyone together and figure out what our next step is, alright? You’ve got herbs right? We’ll be fine.” Max said as he helped Ibe to his feet. Ibe scanned the room with uncertainty at the mention of Ash’s name, but made no protests. 

Ibe recounted how he and Eiji were separated and, upon Max’s inquisition, explained that the spirits had blocked any and all possible connection to the outside world, meaning electricity, cellular service, water, radio signals, everything, in the hopes of either killing all of them to keep them from uncovering evidence needed to condemn those associated with Dino, scare them off from ever coming again, or pure resentment. When left alone, restricted to such a place, with only anger to keep one company, the soul decays until it is a whisper of its former character and only seeks to do to others what the world did to them.

Ash felt his guts curl as Ibe spoke.. Was he decaying? If he was not wallowing in anger, what was he wallowing in? And what would that do to him?

Max asked a follow up Ash only half noticed. “How long will they be able to keep this up? It takes energy doesn’t it?”

Ibe nodded sourly. He had lit a candle while talking and used it to illuminate where Max’s flashlight couldn’t. It cast a menacing aura on the air as he answered. “With as many spirits in this house as there are, I wouldn’t bet on them running out of energy.”

A terrible scream suddenly assaulted the air, muffled, but horrified all the same. Ash and Ibe alike recognized Eiji’s voice and took off in the direction of its origin within the second, Max following close behind. Ash forgot them. He forgot they existed. His brain became hyperfocused on Eiji and the possibility of Eiji being hurt. He could think of no one more undeserving of hurt, no one more worthy of protection. Smiling, kind, warm Eiji, an angel not fit to receive whatever Dino’s bastard soldiers intended. 

Flames burned in Ash’s heart at the thought of any of them even looking at the boy who had brought him so much comfort in so little time with malice. 

Ash didn’t even register that Ibe and Max, not knowing nearly as much about the layout of the mansion, had gone in a different direction to find Eiji. That is, until the thundering of footsteps from an adjacent corridor drew his attention. He turned just in time to see an officer with a dark goatee and flashlight stumble down the hallway. HIs head was smeared with blood and chest heaving with the heavy breaths he was talking.

A strange feeling came off him in waves as he half-tripped half-ran down the hall that Ash immediately recognized as the energy of clove, but it was strong, and eerily familiar. The pull was intense, strong enough to slow Ash’s run and make him stop and stare. Dribbles of drool sliding down the man’s chin, the shake of his hands and resulting bounce of the flashlight, his unsure gait, everything raised red flags in Ash’s head. Simultaneously decided and unsettled, Ash turned and followed him.

The man’s feet shuffled uneasily zombie-style, his free hand lightly tracing the wall. His head would whip around on occasion, like a criminal sneaking past guards. After only a minute following him, Ash’s teeth grinding together and skin growing colder and colder, the man ducked into a closet to his right and closed the door as quickly as possible without slamming it. Ash very simply put his head through the wall.

With his flashlight wedged between detergents and soaps, the man slumped against a wall, his head tilted back and the glare of his sweat emphasized by the light. He took a few moments to catch his breath, while heat rose from Ash’s gut to his face because he was silly enough to follow this man instead of continuing his search for Eiji. Resigned, Ash began to duck out of the closet. 

Until the man’s hand reached through the collar of his shirt.

And tugged on a cord.

Pulling out a small brown bag and green stone hanging on the end.

Time stopped as the man brought the charm closer to his face, examining the gem. The frosty light from the flashlight reflected and bounced off the smooth sides, projecting a leopard print pattern of green light across the closet as he rolled it between his fingers. The whole room seemed to be tinted green.

While Ash saw red. 

The minute he registered that the necklace was Eiji’s- Eiji’s jade, Eiji’s clove- a storm thundered and roared in his chest, rage pumped through his veins at the speed mercury poisons the body. How  _ dare  _ he- how dare he-

Ash burst into the room. The energy of his wrath filled it, the small light overhead and flashing suddenly blazing with light so intense the man screamed in shock and covered his eyes until both bulbs shattered with a ZAP!

Though he could do no direct harm to the man while he wore Eiji’s necklace, Ash had absolutely no intention of letting him go anywhere before he found his friend. What had he done to get Eiji’s necklace?

And where the hell was Eiji?

The man threw himself at the door, grappling for the handle in pitch darkness. Ash refused to let it open, even when he fumbled with it and jangled it like a madman. A truly cornered animal, thrashing between walls like they were cage bars.

Ash forced his presence to suffocate the room so much that the most skeptical of men would feel a chill down their spine. He glided forward, circled him once, and snatched a knife hidden behind the shelving so aggressively it crashed to the floor. He forced the knife into a wedge by the man’s head, earning a tight yelp. Ash dragged the knife downwards, carving out four distinct letters with the force of an army. 

E I J I

The man turned, his face so sunken in terror he appeared to be melting. A moment was spent for his eyes to follow the lines of the name, another to shakily drift to the necklace dangling on his chest. His hands twitched as he grabbed it and pulled it over his head. He stopped, holding it tightly and trying to squint his way through the darkness. His head rotated, surveyed the room and his heavy breaths condensed in the air. He quickly untied the bag, pinched out some clove, and rubbed it across his chest and smeared it into the bleeding wound on the side of his head. 

A horrible scream erupted from him. Ash’s ears rang from the splintering sound, but amidst his cry, the man let the necklace fall to the floor and the clove spill out from the bag. Without a second’s hesitation, Ash snatched the necklace off the ground and slipped from the closet as quickly as possible to and sprint to where he was originally going to find Eiji. 

Ibe and Max passed him, running toward the source of the man’s scream, while Ash ran and ran and ran to where he’d pinned Eiji’s voice. It was one of Dino’s guestrooms, he was sure of it. Ash finally came to a halt, five guest rooms to his right side. A faint golden light trickled from under the third one.

And there Eiji lie, crumpled against the corner, slouched against the legs of the bed. His glow was far too faint for Ash’s liking, and the bruises and lacerations that littered his body were stark as black on white. The angel’s youthful body was far too small and frail, too pale and purple at the same time. 

Ash fell to his knees beside Eiji, stringing his necklace back around him and taking his face in his hands. His breath was thready and faint, barely as strong as the flap of a butterfly’s wing. Ash’s heart dropped out of his body, skin iced. 

“Eiji. Eiji, can you hear me?” Ash checked all over his body for the most severe damage and shook him slightly. Panic grew like a dust storm in his head and he shook Eiji more aggressively. He can’t be losing Eiji. Not now, not ever. Eiji needed to be here, needed to be alive, he’s too good to go out like this. 

“Eiji...please…” Ash whispered, pressing his forehead against Eiji’s. “Please. You’re not done yet.” 

The silence was maddening. 

Until it was broken.

Eiji wheezed and turned, groaning. Ash sucked in a sharp breath and dedicated all of his energy to supporting Eiji, his fear forgotten in a grateful shower- no, avalanche- of relief. 

“Eiji! Eiji, I’m so sorry. It’s okay, I’ve got you now,” Ash found himself choking on his words as he huddled close to his angel, the angel he feared was flying away. 

“Ash…?” Eiji’s head lolled, his eyes fluttering. “‘s good to see you…”

“It’s good to see you too, angel,” Ash used the nickname without even realizing, stroking Eiji’s hair away from his face. 

Eiji smiled a little bit as his eyes opened, watering. “Ash...I see you…”

Ash baited his breath. Eiji was looking straight into his eyes, filled with fondness.

“You’re so good…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy 2020 my friends!


	13. The Calm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ya'll  
> my days have been relentlessly busy and I could hardly find time to work on this, but as of a week or so ago...I find myself...with lots of sudden free time...to spend inside...  
> I want to thank everyone who left kudos or comments, I do it for you <3  
> also this aint edited

He wasn’t sure how much time had passed between Connelly slamming the door and when he came to. Dimly, he thought about how absurd it was to have fallen unconscious so many times this frequently. There had to be some serious medical repercussions from that.  
 Maybe he was concussed.  
 Maybe that’s why the room so dark he couldn’t see seemed to be spinning.  
The air smelled distinctly of defeat, that of melting copper and red. His vision faded in and out with the beats of his heart, like his eyelids were dancing to the drumming, growing spots of random color adding a wonderful accompaniment of fireworks. Like back in Japan, watching the sky rejoice. He was just as breathless then, but in a different way. Maybe he would turn and see his little sister, and his mom, and his dad. It could just be them and the fireworks.  
 Then a firework of the most beautiful greens and yellows summer could offer was around him, and the air smelled clean. Fresh. Hopeful.  
 “I’ve got you now.”   
 Eiji couldn’t string two words together, mumbling and thinking and squinting.   
 Tousled blonde hair, eyes green and caring, a beautifully handsome face.   
 _I see you._  
 _And you’re so good._  
   
 Ibe-san dumped yet another mouthful of water down his throat so aggressively it could be considered water-boarding.  
 “God, how’d you even manage to do this?” Ibe fumed as he pushed another cap of water to Eiji’s lips. “You look terrible.”  
 Eiji sipped the water slowly. “Thank- _ergh!_ ”  
 Max lifted the disinfectant soaked cloth from the cuts zig zagging across Eiji’s arm after tweezing the painful sliver of glass out. “Sorry. Has to happen.”  
 Ash frowned in the corner of Eiji’s vision. He hadn’t faded from Eiji’s visibility- at least not yet. He’d been sitting about four feet away from Eiji since he’d stirred, arms crossed and observant, almost like a hawk watching its nest.  
 Or hunting for prey.   
 And yet, even though he was looking at the Ash everyone said killed and tortured without a second thought, he still could not picture those kind hands inflicting any pain. Whatever it was that made people fear Ash, Eiji couldn’t find it.  
Now that Eiji had been given ample time to actually study and appreciate the ghost, he felt an odd stirring in his chest. A stirring different from the tightness of anxiety or the lingering nausea. It wasn’t bad. It grew the longer Eiji studied the arch of his brows, the delicate but strong curve of his jaw, the sharpness of his jade eyes and the genius they hid, how his blonde hair fell around his face like silk, his lithe body wrapped with muscles-  
 “What do you think Eiji?”  
 Eiji burned in surprise, realizing he had completely drowned out Ibe and Max while he’d been enamored with looking at Ash- who was smiling with hints of an impending tease.  
 “I’m sorry, I kind of zoned out. What’s happening?” Eiji straightened his back and tried to block Ash’s smug grin out of his line of sight.   
 “Max and I are trying to figure out what to do next,” Ibe replied. He spared a quick glance at the officer. “We’re debating between finding everyone else or just trying to get out ourselves. Max suggests splitting up, with him and Ash looking for the others while you and I check out possible escape routes.”  
 Ash wrinkled his nose immediately at the idea, and as much as Eiji wanted to be independent, it felt wrong for him to be separated from Ash, especially so soon after reuniting. But he floundered to find a reason to object besides his own personal comfort.  
 “Could you tell them I don’t like that?” Ash asked, his frown nearly reaching his chin with its intensity.   
 “Ash would like to explore other options,” Eiji translated.   
 “What do you think?” Ibe leaned forward, clasping his hands together with his elbows on his knees. _He held that same position when he asked me if I’d go to America._  
 “...I want to stick together.” Eiji admitted, instinctively averting his eyes in shame. Ibe clearly wanted to stay with him, he’d proven himself burdensome enough already, Ibe-san didn’t trust him, why would he trust him? Max would need Ash with him, if he were to be safe with other spirits around, no one should be alone in here, why did he have to be so _useless_?  
 “What if I go with Max to find the others, and you stay here with Ash?”   
Ibe’s voice.  
 All the muscles in Eiji’s jaw went slack.   
 “You’ve got your protections, and I’ve grown to trust him just a bit,” Ibe was looking at Ash through his thermal camera, who stiffened and curled his hands into fists. “As soon as we find an officer I’ll send them down to you, and I’ve found,” Ibe lowered the camera to pull two walkie-talkies from his bag. “That while we can’t really form send words or contact anyone outside, if I press this,” Ibe pushed the button that would normally allow him to speak. A rough, roaring cacophony of white noise came out the other one. “We can still trigger some kind of alert. So if you have this and your protections on you and stay in this room…”  
 Eiji leaned forward ever so slightly, like shifting too far would destroy his chances.  
 “...Then I’m okay with letting you stay with Ash.”  
 “Thank you, Ibe-san,” the words fell from Eiji’s mouth like foam from a champagne bottle, clumsy and bubbling. “Thank you so, so much, I’m so glad you can trust him, we’ll be careful, I promise, I won’t move an inch and I’ll take the walkie talkie-”  
 “Woah now, Ei-chan,” for the first time in a long time, a sweet, genuine smile perked Ibe’s lips. “You just be safe, I trust you. And Ash?”  
 Ash, rigid as a statue, zoned his gaze even farther in on Ibe.  
 “You be good to my boy.”  
 Muggy warmth filled Eiji’s chest and eyes, but he didn’t cry. He just hugged Ibe as tightly as his damaged body would allow. Ibe always knew. Always knew when Eiji needed some form of a father, knew when the grief would hit again.   
 “I’ll see you in a few minutes, okay?” Ibe said gently.  
 “Yes. I will see you then.” Eiji whispered back to his shirt.   
 With that, Ibe left them with a stick of burning sage and the walkie talkie, Max following with his flashlight and hand resting on the back of his gun. Eiji had barely waved when they shut the door behind them.  
 A second passed in silence. Two. Three. Four.  
 “What did he do to you? That officer guy?” Ash asked. He still held himself like a cat about to pounce. His eyes seemed darker and did not leave Eiji’s for a second.  
 Eiji rolled all the possible words over his tongue. None tasted right, all too bitter or vile. “I...I really am not very sure…?”  
 “He attacked you, didn’t he?”  
 Eiji chewed his lip. “Yes. He found me after I’d fallen into a bunch of glass and couldn’t really move. He picked me up and took me in that room, started asking if I had my bag. I said no, and I noticed his whole ear was missing and he just looked...unhinged.”  
 “Why did he attack you?” Ash finally moved, lowering himself from the box he’d sat atop of to meet Eiji’s eyeline, sitting on the floor.   
 “I guess for my necklace?” Eiji fumbled with the stone and half empty pouch, barely aware of what he was doing. “I mean, he took it once he’d gotten me down-”  
 “Gotten you down?” Ash repeated. His brows sunk heavy over his sharp eyes.   
“Well, he kind of tackled me and had to hold me down to get it off me,” Eiji felt his throat tighten as he remembered the sweaty, crushing hands moving like frightened rats across his sternum. “He said his kids wouldn’t grow up without a dad.”  
 “Selfish bastard,” Ash grumbled and huffed, dropping to glare his frustrations into peeling wooden floors. The sharp angles and lines of his face faded, suddenly soft. “But...but you’re okay now, right?”  
 Eiji nodded immediately. “Oh yes I’m fine! Have you been alright? You disappeared very suddenly earlier.”  
 “Oh,” Ash’s mouth dropped to match the shape of the letter. “One of those guys sent me underground. Wasn’t great, but I’m fine.”  
 “Do you promise?”   
 The words fell out before Eiji could do a thing about them, but he felt no regret. Ash seemed sunken, like his spiritual blood had been drawn. Even when he startled at Eiji’s insistence, he had a weariness that reminded Eiji of an old dog.  
 “Y-yeah, I promise,” Ash flushed ever so slightly when Eiji scooted just an inch closer. “I mean, I’m dead, there’s not much that can be done to me.”  
 The statement fell heavy on Eiji’s heart. He was dead. Ash was dead; really, permanently, and truly dead. He couldn’t imagine simply sending Ash off like he had with other spirits, and the shame from his desire to keep Ash close, maybe at the expense of his happiness, was as rancid as roadkill in his gut. It was a foul, selfish feeling.  
 “I wish you weren’t dead.” Eiji sighed, tucking his head down. “I mean, if I get out of this alive-”  
 “You will.”   
 Eiji swallowed all the moisture in his mouth under the jade gaze, struggling to remember what he was saying. “O-okay, when I get out, I don’t want to...oh...English...English…” his voice faded as he muttered to himself. There wasn’t a single word, was there? A phrase maybe? “...I still want to be able to see you.”  
 Ash blinked slowly. “I’m not good for you. You shouldn’t be stuck with some ghost who’s only going to bring you trouble.”  
 “You’re wrong,” Eiji pursed his lips, abrupt. “I really love being with you, and you helped me out so many times since I’ve been here. You’ve brought me the opposite of trouble.”  
 Ash melted a little, huffing out soft laughter. “You...you absolute cheese.”  
 I need to learn more American slang, Eiji thought. “Cheese? Like the food?”  
 “Oh, no it’s, uh,” Ash cleared his throat loudly. “It means you’re kind of sappy or corny.”  
 “Sappy like syrup? Am I corn-like?” Eiji reeled in confusion. “Is this an American thing?”  
 “Damn it. No, I’m sorry,” Ash unsuccessfully tried to hide his embarrassment under his hands, but his ears still simmered red. “You are really nice and you don’t care how people think of you, so you don’t care what they think of what you say, so you’ll just say whatever, even if its super cliche or overdone. That’s cheesy. You’re a cheese.”  
 Stomach turning with inseparable excitement and nervousness, Eiji quickly hopped to his feet as best his aching body would allow. “I am fine with that. Now let’s look for a way out- that’s what we're supposed to be doing.”  
 “Take it easy there,” Ash advised. “You’re still all kinds of torn up.”  
 “And you look handsome too Ash.” Eiji teased. “Now let’s see if we can break some windows.”

 No windows were breaking.  
 Eiji had thrown all he could lift at the glass with the hopes of creating an escape route, but each came up fruitless. The best he got was a few fractures in one panethat he threw a bronze sculpture at.   
 He slumped into a brown leather armchair with a heavy sigh, allowing the cushions to swallow him up.  
 “Do you think we could go through the chimney?” Eiji wondered aloud. “Or like...dig a tunnel?  
 “You need sleep,” Ash stated calmly. “I don’t think we’ll make much progress until everyone’s grouped together again.”  
 Everyone. Max, Ibe, and all the officers. One of which had tackled him and ripped his protective charm off his neck and left him bleeding on the floor of a tiny guest room. A charm that he now had tucked beneath his shirt. A charm he would certainly want back.  
 Ibe said he’d send down the first officer he found. What if that officer was Connelly? He’d failed to let Ibe know about the man’s attack. He hoped wildly it was a temporary episode of insanity that drove Connelly to do what he did, but if it wasn’t, and he came back...  
 “Eiji, you okay?” Ash’s voice cut through the fog.  
 “As okay as I can be right now,” Eiji chuckled without a smile. “A little cold.”  
 “Yeah. It’s always been an icebox in here,” Ash sighed. “But you don’t have to worry about anything, alright? You’ve got two jades protecting you.”  
 “Huh? Two jades?” Eiji’s eyebrows cinched together.  
 “Oh, ah,” Ash darted his eyes quickly. “My real name. It’s Aslan Jade Callenreese. So there’s...y’know...a jade in that…”  
 Warmth blossomed in Eiji’s chest. “Aslan...that is very nice. It’s cool that your middle name is Jade, it's one of the most powerful protection stones. It’s kind and caring just like you.”  
 Ash pushed his hair from his face and grinned sheepishly. “Absolute cheese. You are the nicest person I’ve ever met, why are you calling me kind?”  
 “Because you are,” Eiji said definitively. He would leave Ash no room to argue. “Just that you are here with me shows how kind you are.”   
 Gears were visibly spinning behind Ash’s eyes. “No, I am selfish. I am being very selfish right now by staying with you.”  
 Eiji winced slightly. “How is it selfish? I want you here too.”  
 “Because I know what my life and, well, my death bring to people,” Ash’s eyes sunk to the floor. “Especially people I’m close to. They always die terrible, horrible deaths and I...I just really don’t want the for you.”  
 Watching Ash, slumped and ashamed felt the same as watching a dark sky, either just before or after a storm. Weary, heavy, and ready to move on to the next.  
 “Well, I want to be close to you,” Eiji spoke more gently, sensing vulnerability in Ash’s posture, sinking like wax from a burning candle. “But if that’s not what you want, I won’t keep hanging around just to be a nuisance or burden or anything. I can-”  
 “You’re nothing close to a nuisance or burden.” Ash replied sharply. “I haven’t felt as safe and happy or light as I do with you since I lost Griffin. If I weren’t such a mess then I think this would be easier. You especially wouldn’t have gotten so hurt.”  
 “I am a strong young man, I will be fine,” Eiji scoffed playfully. “All I ask is to be with you and for you to not feel guilty for allowing yourself a friend.”  
 Ash smiled warmly, his eyes shining. “Cheesy old man.”  
 “You know, respect of one’s elders is very important in Japan, you would be quite rude there,” Eiji joked.  
 “So? I’m rude here,” Ash tilted his head and leaned back, hair falling perfectly across his face and highlighting his strong jaw. “I’m just rude.”  
 “You are an obnoxious youth. That’s what you are,” Eiji fired back, grinning widely.   
 “Oh, how you wound me, Eiji Okumura.” Ash sarcastically flung his hand against his forehead with Shakespearean drama.   
 “You are an overgrown baby,” Eiji stated in the most monotone voice he could muster with laughter rattling in his chest.  
 “And you are a shrinking little grandpa. Your turn,” Ash leaned forward, his grin twisting smugly.  
 “You are wonderful,” Eiji replied bluntly, confidence perking his lips. He took Ash’s burning red face as a sign of surrender, then realized what he’d just said.  
 “You can’t just- I’m- we were- can’t do this,” Ash sputtered. “There must be a cultural divide here because I’m not sure I’m understanding you, grampa.”  
 “What are you not understanding?” Eiji felt his heart lessen to the weight of a feather in his chest. He had no control over his mouth; none at all, and he was about to start blabbing, he could feel it, and then Ash would be uncomfortable and everything would be ruined _oh my god am I talking right now?_  
 “I think what’s casual conversation in Japan is kind of flirting here,” Ash said, starting to smile again. “Ei-chan, are you trying to flirt with me?”  
 _Oh my god don’t call me Ei-chan I will explode._  
 “What would you say if I was?” Eiji answered carefully. All the air in his body was wadded into a ball at the base of his throat, tingling with nerves.   
 “I would say that being in a relationship with a ghost is pretty eccentric,” Ash’s cheshire smile faded. “I would say it’s probably not good for you, and it’s not what you really want to do.”  
 “Then…” Eiji took a deep breath. “What if it is what I really want to do?”  
 Ash sucked in harshly. “I’ve...I’ve never really been in a relationship like that. I don’t think it’d be good for you.”  
 “I haven’t either. I just know I want to spend more time with you, because I’m happy with you,” Eiji prepared himself for rejection. “But I get it, you don’t really know me and you’ve been horribly mistreated and I don’t want to make you uncomfortable at all-”  
 “Eiji.”  
 “I’m sorry, I’ve made it weird haven’t I? I’m sorry.”  
 “Eiji, don’t apologize.”  
 “But I think I’ve upset you and I don’t want to do that so I am sorry.”  
 “Eiji, do you want me to be your ghost boyfriend?” Ash’s smile was the most open smile Eiji had ever had the pleasure of seeing. “Just yes or no.”  
 Eiji swallowed thickly, quickly glancing around the room as if to look for advice from someone. “I, um...kind of?”  
 Ash made a small noise of surprise, eyes bulging. “Really?”  
 “Yes,” Eiji giggled, suddenly giddy as a child. “It would make me very happy.”  
 Ash lit up like a thousand chandeliers in heaven’s ballroom. A swaddle of warmth like a quilt engulfed Eiji as Ash laid his head against Eiji’s shoulder, so tender and gentle it couldn’t possibly be coming from a dead man.   
 Yet…  
 Eiji ran a hand through Ash’s luscious blonde hair, momentarily surprised that he could even touch it. He weaved it through his fingers while Ash moved to wrap his arms around Eiji, his head still buried against his chest. He marveled at the beautiful paradox of a boy, with such healthy hair and capability of love despite his death and suffering endured.   
 “...I didn’t think I’d ever...really…” Ash mumbled into his shirt. “I didn’t think I’d find someone I wanted to be with. When I heard people talk about it, it seemed impossible, and I know it’s early and selfish...but…” Ash lifted his head, his green eyes nailing Eiji in place with baited breath. “I want you to stay with me. As long as you can.”  
 Bubbles of affection floated through Eiji’s stomach to come bursting out of his mouth through giggles. “I’ll stay as long as you let me.”  
 Gentle laughter escaped the stoic, dangerous Ash Lynx as he playfully mussed Eiji’s hair. “Cheesy old man.”  
 “Yes, and you are a lazy American,” Eiji countered as he tried to tousle Ash’s hair, only for his hand to fall right through.  
 “See, now that’s just stereotyping,” Ash lifted a brow in fake offense.  
 “You can’t just turn all untouchable whenever I’m about to-”  
 Ash pressed his very real, very solid forehead against Eiji’s, effectively cutting him off.   
 “Can I kiss you?”  
 Eiji flushed as he mesmerized every variation of green in Ash’s eyes. “Yes.”  
 Sweet, reluctant lips met Eiji’s, slowly locking as if ready to pull away at any sign of distress. Eiji had kissed a girl or two in Japan, but this...this was so different. Ash’s lips were unfathomably soft but also startlingly lukewarm. A nagging reminder that, even as Eiji sighed deeper into the kiss, Ash was dead. He didn’t have the heat of a living person, because he wasn’t. Eiji felt him, saw him, heard him only because Ash wanted him to.  
 Ash broke away timidly, leaving Eiji’s lips strangely empty. They only stared at each other for the next moments, waiting for the other to comment.  
 “...I think that was the first kiss I’ve ever enjoyed,” Ash remarked. “Why did it have to be when I’m dead?”  
 “Oh, Ash,” Eiji sighed, reaching for unreal hands he’d grown to adore. “I’ll find a way for us to live normally, I will.”  
 Ash paused, the beginning of amusement sparkling in his eyes. “Really? To live normally?”  
 Eiji choked on his inhale. “No, to just- that’s not what I- you-”  
 Ash laughed lightly. “It’s okay. I know what you mean.”  
 Eiji interlocked their fingers fondly and rubbed his thumb against Ash’s knuckles, enjoying the quiet and peace that came with their feelings revealed and resolutions met. Ash’s grip on Eiji’s hand tightened abruptly, all the relaxation in his bones vanishing as he glared daggers at someone behind Eiji, who felt instant chills from his hairline to his toes.  
 “Oh my god...What the hell?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i feel like their characterization was weird in this one...?  
> again, sorry about the HUMONGOUS wait for this chapter.


	14. The Storm

 

A lightning-bright beam of light assaulted the sitting room, almost violent in its abrupt entrance. Ash had Eiji tucked against his chest in a split-second and willed his energy to fold and spread around them, effectively rendering both of them invisible. He would not let that Connelly bastard attack Eiji again. If he could, he’d rip Connelly apart with his teeth and nails alone, but he was able to keep his rage subdued enough to think logically and acknowledge the consequences of such actions. But still.

There was no way in hell Connelly would get close to Eiji again.

So he didn’t think twice about immediately hiding Eiji from the individual in the doorway shining their flashlight into the room. Eiji clutched to him tightly.

Ash’s eyes adjusted enough to the light to make out a woman’s silhouette holding the flashlight and broad shouldered outline of a man behind her. She swept the flashlight across the room, briefly illuminating both her and the man’s confused faces. Neither of them were Connelly.

“Why is it empty?” The woman’s voice came as the flashlight continued to prowl around the walls, slinking into nooks and crannies to find its target. “Mr. Ibe said that the kid was down here. Do you think something happened?”

“Doesn’t he have, like, a ghost bodyguard?” The man replied as he crossed the threshold. His waist was level with Ash’s eyeline. “Maybe he found a way out?”

The man was not exceptionally strong looking and wore a splatter of bruises across the right side of his face. Taking him out if he caused trouble wouldn’t be too hard, unless Ibe had supplied them with protection against attacking spirits, in which case he’d have to use a physical object from within the room and hope he hit his mark. The woman had one hand holding the flashlight and the other on the gun on her belt. She was just as physically imposing as the man, though she was clearly favoring her left leg-  
_“Ash.”_

Eiji’s voice seized his attention, and he released his grip, not realizing how tight it had become. The boy, still practically in Ash’s lap, looked up. He smiled. His deep brown eyes briefly reminded him of a deer, somewhat sad but spirited and innocent at the same time.

“It’s okay, they aren’t dangerous.”

“I don’t want to take any chances with you.” Ash pursed his lips, looking up again at the officers gently calling Eiji’s name as they looked the room over once again.

“Ash, I can feel them, they’re okay. Please?”

Oh, he melted like  _ putty  _ when Eiji broke out the pleases while still gracing him with those puppy eyes, soft and shining and, like the rest of him, glowing.

Ash sighed. “Just, stay by my side, alright?”

Eiji pressed a gentle kiss to Ash’s jaw, his breath warm and alive against the curve of Ash’s neck. “I will, for as long as you want me.”

Butterflies, birds, entire jungles flew in Ash’s stomach. Eiji made a boy out of a murderer, and he didn’t even have to try.

_ If I could love, I would love you. _

Eiji stood as Ash let the disguise drop, startling the two officers who’d been trying to open a locked closet in their search for Eiji. 

He flushed under the wide gaze of the officers.,. “Hello guys, sorry, I wanted to hide before I knew who was here, just to be safe.”

“Okay, but what happened to you?” The woman shoved her flashlight into the man’s hands and hurried forward. She took Eiji’s hands and squinted at the bandages covering up the cuts and scrapes. “God, we need to get out of here. Have you had any luck finding a way out?”

“I’m alright,” Eiji started, but a low whistle from the man cut him off. 

“You get into a fight with some bears?” He gawked. The injuries molesting Eiji’s skin made Ash sick to his stomach every time he looked at them, wracking him with guilt. Ash went to stand behind Eiji when he flinched at the man’s words, hoping his presence would be of some comfort.

“It was dark and I couldn’t see is all,” Eiji shifted his weight from his feet. “But no, I haven’t found a way out. All I managed to do was crack that window.” He turned and pointed to the window they’d been assaulting earlier. A spiderweb of cracks splintered out from where the bronze sculptured bounced off it. 

“Well I want to get out of here. No way in hell I’m dying somewhere as musty as this,” the woman stood on a table by the window and took a brief moment to examine it. It was big, at least as wide as Ash’s shoulders and about three feet tall, centered in the wall and about four feet off the ground.

“Back up guys,” the woman tugged her gun from her belt, and only after seeing that no one was in front of her, shot the window.

_ CRASH! _

The sound of shattering glass following the familiar clap of a gunshot startled Eiji into stumbling back against the wall. Ash covered his face to deflect falling glass.

“Yeah Amy! Way to go!” the man hollered, pumping his fist in the air. Eiji turned white.

“Shhhh! Don’t scream like that!” Eiji’s voice cracked and wavered as he grabbed hold of the man’s hand. Pins and needles traveled down Ash’s spine suddenly.

“What the hell is this?” The woman, Amy, snapped. She fired another bullet at the window, and again the sound of it shattering and shower of glass filled the room.

“What did you just- what?” The man hissed, tugging hard away from Eiji to scowl at the window. Ash followed his line of sight.

The twice shot window was still there. 

The glass was split into so many fragments that it almost resembled a breaking glacier. Some areas, likely where the bullets hit, were so broken that they were completely white from the cracks and splinters.

And yet there was still two windows’ worth of glass on the floor.

“Wait, Mrs. Amy, please-” Eiji started forward, hands outstretched placatingly. 

_ BANG! _

_ BANG! _

“Mrs. Amy, don’t do that! Stop!” Eiji cried as the woman continued firing at the window. Each time, there was a subsequent sound of glass exploding, and glass fell, but never did the window even start to open. Like another damaged window appeared in the place of whichever one Amy had shot.

Ash whipped around and found Eiji weakly trying to stop the woman, reaching for her gun wielding hand and pleading. Cold with sudden fear, Ash took a step forwar-

_ BANG! _

_ Shot. Eiji’s been shot and he’s dead and it’s all my fault- _

Ash’s panic at the sound of a gun in Eiji’s proximity took a backseat at the realization that Eiji was fine, he and the woman were still grappling for the gun.

A match was struck in his chest at the close call, suddenly blazing. 

Without a second thought,  Ash charged forward and snatched the gun out of the woman’s hands and threw it as far as he could out the door, so quickly that the gun was clattering on the ground before the woman realized she didn’t have it. Ash took advantage of her confusion to get in front of Eiji, forcing her away from him.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” The woman snarled, her lips pulled back and showing her teeth in an almost animal way.

“It won’t break,” EIji answered, keeping his eyes forward, stubborn and unyielding. 

“It was breaking!” The male officer screamed, his eyes bulged and face red.

“No,” Eiji said firmly. “I can feel it now. The spirits here, they won’t let go of it. We have to annul their power here, we need Ibe-”

“What are you saying?” Tha man asked, jutting his face towards Eiji. Ash took a protective step between them, despite knowing the man couldn’t see him. He could feel the remnants of the feared gangster and master killer claw up the back of his throat at even the slightest move of aggression toward Eiji.

Eiji calmly caressed the back of Ash’s hand. “Spirits can harness energy from the world around them, and they can do things we consider impossible with it. Right now, that energy is holding the glass in place so we can’t escape. This needs to be an unsuitable environment for their influence if we want to get out. Where was Ibe-san when you left?” 

“Upstairs, near the back of the house,” the woman answered. The straight line of her shoulders began to sag. “I was stuck in a bathroom with all the water running, and Jacob was in a longue being chased around by flying pool cues.”

“Scarier than you think,” the man muttered, still looking at the paradoxical window.

“We need him,” Eiji declared. “He’s got all the materials with him, we’ll need the incense and agrimony and definitely sage.”

“Just have your ghost friend do it. Can’t he also manipulate energy?” The man said gruffly, zeroing in on Eiji.

“This is way too much for one spirirt too handle, we need-”  
_Threat_.

He and Ash both turned around to watch the door at the same time, their respective alarms going off in tandem.

“Why did you stop? Why can’t we just-”

“Sh.” Eiji breathed. He fished his necklace out from under his shirt and tugged it over his head. “Come here. I need you to trust me. Hold on to this, as close to the bag part as you can get.”

The officers’ hands hung in the air, obviously doubting. Ash could see Eiji tensing as if he were a dog with raised hackles. 

“Please! Do you want to end up like Officer Beauregard?”

Even with how Eiji stumbled over the pronunciation of the man’s surname, the memory hit them head on. They exchanged a quick glance, grabbed the string of the necklace and huddled close to Eiji. 

The door creaked. Ash hid himself. 

The room dropped 30 degrees as soon as Golzine’s cronies seeped through the wooden door. Ash counted ten heads in the soupy black of their forms, the cloud of darkness they brought with them stark against Eiji’s aura.

The longer Ash stared at the approaching group, the more their darkened faces blurred and twisted into each other before tearing away. Their bodies were almost indistinguishable from each other. He could hardly make out any individual pair of eyes in the shadowy, malformed mass of men. 

“Jesus, why’d it just get so cold?” The woman hissed, shivering. “Are there- are they-”

“Don’t be afraid,” Eiji said gently, his eyes wide and brows pressed together so intensely Ash could see veins. “Just keep holding on like I told you.”

The shifting black monster of Golzine’s men rolled into the room, the temperature dropping more and more the closer they got. They slinked up to Eiji and the officers, apparentely having not noticed Ash yet. Half a dozen hands reached out towards them. Eiji’s skin appeared to be drawn as tight as possible over his skull and colored a disturbing stone gray. Ash had no idea if he could really see the strange clump of spirits, but his eyes were certainly fixed in their direction. Still twitching and shifting, the monster of spirits circled the three like a wolf circling prey.

All Ash could hear was the memory of a heart, beating loud in his ears, as he watched. His being ran with power, singing with the survival instincts of the beast from which he’d taken his name. Eiji wasn’t someone they could take. Not Eiji.

A smoky black hand extended from the monster with its clawed fingers reaching for Eiji’s face. He flinched back, whole body shaking, but kept a firm grip on his protective necklace.

_ Not Eiji. _

_ Please not Eiji. _

_ Don’t. Don’t touch Eiji. _

The hand stopped a mere inch from Eiji’s nose. Ash could see his heavy exhales as his breath frosted in the prescence of something so cold. The fingers on the hand spread and pushed, seemingly coming into contact with some kind of invisible force field molded in the shape of Eiji’s body- surely the boundary of the sage and jade’s protective. More hands grew from the hulking thing, all coming to feel around the limits of the charms’ protection. Seeing so many big, uncaring hands roaming so close to Eiji soured Ash’s stomach and something lodged in the back of his throat.

_ Not Eiji.  _

_ Leave Eiji alone. _

The first hand to appear tracked a finger up the border along Eiji’s throat. Ash was TV static, absolutely buzzing and incoherent  and enraged with something so nasty near Eiji. The sweet, honey glow of his aura pulsed.

And in an instant, the slow, lumbering beast made of the ten sprawling spirits became something of a hellhound.

All the sockets where the eyes of individual spirits should be dripped red light like blood, and all ten of the men’s voices screeched in anger, a ripping, horrible sound, like the scraping of nails on a chalkboard played through a faulty, glitching amp. The many feet of the creature scrabbled and clamored across the floor, arms flailing and sometimes grabbing at anything in the room.

It resembled a cat with long claws on hardwood, skittering for a hold and screaming in frustration. The male officer seemed faint, one hand holding the string of Eiji’s necklace and the other digging into Eiji’s tense shoulder.

One of the distressed arms managed to grab hold of the iron in the closet in its fevor, the cord trailing behind it and whipping back and forth like a panicked worm on the sidewalk. Ash was on his feet in an instant, managing to get to the group of the living just as the items began to rain down as all the arms followed suit.

The officers screamed while Eiji ducked his head against his shoulders, eyes squeezed shut.

The items bounced off the protection Ash summoned above the living and clattered to the floor, adding percussion to the already hellish sound of the creature shrieking. He could swear he heard voices growling “ _ Ash! _ ” from the monster, but he paid them no mind.

_ Not Eiji you goddamn psychos. _

“Ash, thank you, but please,” Eiji’s soft voice came from behind him, and for just a moment, he turned to meet his eyes.

A force like a battering ram smashed into Ash’s side, knocking him across the room and through the neighboring wall. Ash did not even bother to see what room he’d been thrown into before he bolted straight through the wall again, his body tense, rigid, energy humming and ready to strike at the thought of that  _ thing _ being in the same room as Eiji.. The monster horde of spirits writhed in rage once it saw him, scrambling again to its feet as all ten deformed faces screamed at him. Ash jumped out of the way just as a shock of energy shot out from the center of the glob of spirits, briefly causing the lights to turn on before the bulbs burst with a  _ ZAP!  _ in a shower of glass.

Wheezing and coughing, Ash took a second to catch his breath and summoned energy to strike right back at the monster, nailing it in one of its faces. A brief fear flashed through Ash’s mind that the creature was like a hydra, that two new heads would grow in place. But he had no time to wonder as the clumsy, grabby thing managed to catch his left hand and tug him to the ground, all ten mouths shifting towards him to scream all things unholy into Ash’s face with unnervingly cold breath. Ash squirmed and fought, but the monster’s hold was tight and Ash’s energy almost depleted for the second time.

Swirling shadows wormed towards Ash’s face, slinking into him through his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. It was like they blocked his brain, he suddenly struggled to think and breathe. He fought and screamed and kicked and _get out_ _get out get out no no no no_

The cold darkness vanished in a spark of warm light. 

Ash hacked, knowing nothing physical had invaded him but still shaking and retching from the ugly violation of his body, fighting to keep his mind in the present and see anything but fat old men and grubby fingers and blood. 

But why was he warm again?

Ash spat a bit more of himself out and pushed himself to his knees, shivering like he was freezing even though the warmth around him was...pleasant. 

Tears he had yet to notice blurred the edges of his vision as he looked up into the source of light and warmth.

He choked.

Eiji stood above him, a simple Zippo lighter in hand, murmuring and holding his hand up like he was fending off an attacker. Crumpled, burning paper blazed in a circle around Ash that smelled distinctly of sage. The fire reflected in Eiji’s eyes, turning them into warm hearths promising safety.

“Stay there Ash, I’ve got it, don’t leave the circle,” Eiji’s voice was lower and more serious than Ash had ever heard. “You’re okay, I’m okay, we’re okay.” 

He followed Eiji’s line of sight. The monstrous thing was growing more and more divided, so much that Ash could see where each body began and ended. They screamed and squirmed in rage, fighting towards Ash and Eiji, but shrinking away from the ring of fire and smell of burning sage. Ash watched with huge eyes as the smoke filled the room, strangely light colored, and the monster screamed and cowered away from it. The red faded from its eyes, the shadowy bonds connecting the bodies ruptured. The lavender colored smoke from the sage moved with purpose, piercing through the chest of each body and bleeding through the pathways and divisions of their veins, highlighting the route blood would take in a living body so brightly Ash felt like he was looking at an anatomical diagram. They all thrashed and scratched at their wispy skin, some semblance of human colors returning to the black forms.

And to Ash’s surprise, they were  _ sobbing _ . 

“Hold this, please,” Eiji said softly, reaching behind him to hand Ash the lighter but not lowering his defensively raised hand. His eyes never left the twisting spirits before them. Ash took the lighter and spared a quick glance towards the terrified officers huddled against the wall, Eiji’s necklace still firmly held between their snow white fists.

All ten guards were clutching at their chests, screaming and crying as liquid like blood poured from their eyes. 

“You are not welcome here,” Eiji said. His spiritual glow  _ ballooned  _ and Ash found himself absolutely entranced. He was the sun, bright and beautiful and so strong. “You must go now. This is not your place. Move on, and find your peace.”

With one final, united wail, the ten men evaporated in a twist of gray smoke, the tingle along Ash’s spine that he knew signified malicious presence was gone with them. 

Eiji finally turned to look at Ash, still kneeling on the floor and gazing up at his radiant angel. 

“Are you okay?”

Ash nodded, all the earlier nausea and unease gone in Eiji’s glow. “I’m alright. Are they?”

Eiji glanced to the officers. “The ghosts are gone. Are you two okay?”

“Y-yeah,” the woman stuttered, while the man mutely nodded. 

“Eiji, are you okay?” Ash asked, reaching up to take his hand.

“I will be eventually, but I don’t think...that I can…” Eiji swayed, stumbling and losing his footing. His glow shrunk exponentially, barely visible through his chest, where it originated in his heart. Ash startled to attention. “I’m...did…” He began to ramble in Japanese, too quiet for Ash to understand even if he did speak Japanese. 

Eiji toppled like an uneven wooden block tower. Ash frantically got up enough to catch him before he could hit the floor, or worse, the fires. After quickly checking that Eiji was still breathing, he blew out the fires he could reach and pulled Eiji close against him, continously whispering _Thank you,_ _you saved me_ , _you did it_ , _you got rid of them_ , _you’re okay_.

The door to the room suddenly burst open, and Eiji’s mentor and the other officers, not including the crazy one who attacked Eiji, poured in. Ibe took one look around the room, smelling the burned sage, the smoke, noticed how everything not nailed to the walls or floor was strewn about haphazardly, the officers cowering against the wall with Eiji’s protection in their hands still, and Eiji’s limp form in Ash’s arms, yet again. 

“What the hell happened?” Max barked. Ash noticed that the right side of his shirt was soaked red. 

The officers rambled, explaining the story to Max and a half-listening Ibe. Ash could feel the man’s eyes on him, felt the thermal camera zooming in on him. His disdain for cameras rumbled below the surface, and he combed his fingers through Eiji’s hair to keep himself grounded and focus on the unconcious, weakened boy.

Ibe approached them and knelt down beside Ash, still peering through his camera. He took a funny looking box from his backpack of equipment, and with a quick warning to the others, flipped it on. Choppy white noise louder than thunder erupted from the machine.

“Ash,” he said calmly, hand still resting on the loud box. “Use the energy from this device. Please, tell me what happened here, and what happened to Eiji.”

Ash leaned closer to the machine, taking special care not to jostle Eiji. To his surprise,  there was empty energy offering itself from the box. He took hold of it.

_ “Can you hear me?” _

“Yes Ash, we heard that.” Ibe answered, ignoring the gasps from the policemen and focusing instead on Eiji. “I’m begging you Ash. Please, tell me what happened.”

Ash looked down upon Eiji’s face again, his eyes closed, skin still closer to green than the familiar mocha, haggard breathing, his bones jutting through his skin.

_ “He got rid of them. He saved us.” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm so sorry about how long it took me to get this chapter out, I hope the length makes up for it!  
> I want to thank everyone who comments or leaves a kudos on my work, because you keep me going and bring me so much joy like ya'll don't even know. All the love in the world to you <3


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